I missed the now deleted thread.
I had sometimes idly wondered in what field Ron's doctorate was in. Simply out of curiosity. I figured it was probably anthropology or a related field.
I never considered that his doctorate had any bearing on his qualifications as a wilderness survival expert. I simply cannot imagine any doctorate which would give knowledge and experience in this area.
OK, how about medicine, you ask? Well, as a boarded Emergency MD, who has taken several wilderness survival (including in the field emergency medical management) emergency medicine courses, I can say that what I can do in the field is little more than an EMT or a nurse. Thus, my MD degree is of little benefit even in those rare times of emergent medical need in the field. It is damn hard to defibrillate a person on a trail, or give them some lidocaine IV. Even having an IV is unlikely.
By the way, I knew that Ron's degree wasn't in medicine. How? Quite simply, ALL MD's HATE to be called 'Doc.' This term conjures up the worst sort of patient population who commonly used this word, as well as the sterotype doctor in the old West.
As for what Ron did in the military, I fail to see the relevance of that as well. My son in law was a Green Beret, more precisely, as I recall, it was USASF (US Army Special Forces). He was a medic, crossed in demo. As far as the usefulness of his training today, his medical training is still quite good, probably about the same as a nurse, as far as primary acute care goes, but his knowledge of drugs is quite dated. I must admit that I do feel better knowing that my daughter has a weapons trained person around other than herself. Alan generally doesn't tell people about his military background. His military background has no relevenace to his present occupation.
So, I add my voice to the chorus of people who are saying Ron is a great wilderness guide and survival instructor. I visited his website and feel that the curriculum of his courses show a considerable depth of knowledge in the field. I have always read his posts with interest, and have been very favorably impressed with his obvious wisdom and experience expressed in these posts.
Good fortune and happy trails, Ron!
Walter Welch MD, Diplomate, American Board of Emergency Medicine
(if anyone cares, I also have a BS in Biology, went to Pharmacy school, and worked as a biochemist; none of which helps me in wilderness survival very much)
