True confessions! In our efforts to reduce weight of our packs (a good overall goal), do we skimp on safety? Do you depend on fellow backpackers as a "backup"? Does the idea that you will be meeting people nearly daily on the trail lead you to take just a little less emergency gear? Have you ever had to "borrow" from someone you meet on the trail or scrounge abandoned food from a bear box? Or are you 100% self sufficient? Have you ever taken your gear "to the limit"?
Another way to say this- would you pack any differently if you knew for sure 1) you would not see another person the entire trip and 2) you would be in the limit of expected rotten weather for several days or 3) you would get hurt, under conditions 1 and 2?