Self-sufficiency is often defined by a determined belief that freedom is defined by individualism. This is simply not true. To be self-sufficient, others are necessary. It does not matter that we view our societies as slowly evolving towards, even progressing towards, our dependency upon others in the modern world; this has always been the case.
Centuries ago people depended upon their neighbors. The community was a support group for the self-sufficient. Your neighbor could fix the plumbing and you were a good gardener; working together kept both you and the community progressing towards both happiness and efficiency.
And although our communities are being redefined and molded to include more and more, larger areas, and diverse cultures, this one simple principle still applies: we need each other. This is one of the simple truths that we must come to realize or we perish.
There is no such thing as going it alone; there is no paradise of one.
The Armchair Philosopher 
Bravo. Whether scientific discovery or food, none of us is where we are without the help of others, both current and those who have gone before us.
Moments after congratulating myself yesterday after framing a wall, I remembered that someone else built the table saw and Ramset; someone grew the trees and milled the wood.