Yes, but we also have the benefit of modern materials science.

You can make a backpack with a lot more parts/materials and still have it lighter than a backpack made 20 or 30 years ago.

Of course the downside is that you can't repair them when they break. You can't weld, glue, or sew broken parts any more, and good luck getting replacement parts or modifying your pack in any way.

Some of us like our creature comforts too. I could go ultra-lightweight, but I don't want to be eating nothing but beef jerky and snickers bars, and sleeping under a couple of square feet of tarp. I want to eat real food and sleep in a tent (actually I've always been a hut man).

The tradeoffs are substantial. I've come across a lot of through hikers over the years. The featherweight packers are usually the ones who are mentally broken, as if enduring solitary confinement in a cell that has a serious water leak and freezing temperatures. The heavyweight packers are physically broken but still bear a resemblance of a civilized human being.

Unfortunately does not cover all aspects of travelling. Might need required safety equipment etc. But for people hiking I agree :-)