It's the ol' adaptability principle. Many people who own stix n' brix will stay in the path of the oncoming Cat 5 hurricane or F-5 tornado because they're "safe" in their inviolable sanctuary surrounded by all their Stuff. 9 out of 10 dentists agree it's harder to hit a moving target...take that from a Viet Vet. We dodged a LOT, being nomads of the helicopter sky.
And citizens live when nomads perish. It has worked both ways over the centuries. Some are better equipped to deal with some catastrophes, some with others. 20th/21st century life has not been kind to the kind of nomads probably referred to in that quote.
Yes, Brand was the creator of the WEC...I still have my original copy of it. Part of my youth, and it was mind-expanding if not mind blowing. I still go back to it on occasion when I'm trying to explain concepts about thinkin' outside the box to the youngun's. Its subtitle was "Index to Tools". Was then, and to an extent still is. The reading list you mention puts me in mind of the young Frank Zappa's quote: "If you truly value your mind, drop out of school and go to a library."
Or you could do both. It was the library that pointed me toward my real interests though, so at least for me, the library was far more important. And still is. College, including graduate school, lasted for less than 10 years. But since I was 6 or so, I've never been without a book to read for "fun", and I could never have afforded my own book habit!
My wife was at one time a high school and then college instructor in the craft of Oral History and was aligned with the Foxfire project in Appalachia. We collected a lot of local histories and instructed and performed in Living History for kids for decades here in the Northwest. Haven't read Foxfire in years, but I'll bet it's as interesting today.
