As S.L.A. Marshall observed shortly after the Second World War, minimizing the “soldier’s load” (literally what each individual soldier must carry) is a military technique which was learned – and sometimes forgotten and painfully re-learned as far back as the Roman Empire. From Army Field Manual 7-92, THE INFANTRY RECONNAISSANCE PLATOON AND SQUAD (AIRBORNE, AIR ASSAULT, LIGHT INFANTRY

), archived at  GlobalSecurity.org

, Section 8-8, Soldier’s Load:

8-8. SOLDIER’S LOAD

The soldier’s load is a crucial concern of the reconnaissance platoon leader. How much is carried, how far, and in what configuration are important mission considerations. The platoon leader should require soldiers to carry only mission-essential equipment. The reconnaissance platoon cannot be overloaded with equipment that covers all possible contingencies. The battalion supply system must be able to deliver contingency supplies. (For more information on load planning, calculating, and management, see FM 21-18.) (Techniques used to assist leaders and soldiers in organizing tactical loads to ensure safety and combat effective are discussed in Appendix D

.)

In other words, only so much can go in a go-bag. If you’re going to need more than that in a disaster, you need to plan further than the go-bag.