Ha! Ha! I agree Pepe. It seemed a bit hippy-ish back then to me too. That was o.k. I was the number 200-so anonymous bought in Lifer.
Now go-back looking at the actual in-prints . . . seems more survivalists-like. Actually they were Bootstrap’ers/Self-Sustain’ers/Doers
Certainly all of the early MENS stuff was super Practical/DOer biased when compared to much of the post-2000 live-the-earth-as-a-whole-habitat endeavors, and publications today.
JeffD’s point of doing for yourself&yours and showing a you-can-do-this-too pattern. Versus convincing the masses.
The Whole Earth Catalog publisher actually showed and promoted then available minimal costs surplus bolt action rifle’s as the only-need Back-to-the-Land tool you would ever really need.
So these perceived then hippies were not anti-gun. Just not capital “S” 1980’s Survivalist insistent that your rifle-tool just must-be at least a military type 7.62x51 (308 Winchester) 20 shot semi-auto battle rifle.
Woodgasifiers this is the separation out of the For-All thinkers.
From the Just-Like thinkers.
From the I-can-do-this/you-can-too thinkers.
In my life only the I-can-do-this/you-can-too folk have proven to have any real true staying power and worthiness merit.
These others . . . . .?
Blah, blah, blather on for a time. Peter-out and are as dusts in the winds.
Steve unruh