Vincent,

I think he'll get a lot more pleasure, satisfaction, and a sense of
accomplishment from finding his destination without the help of
gadgets (unless you consider a compass and a chart as "gadgets").

I agree with the first part. I vehemently disagree with the end: If a
GPS is a "gadget", then chart and compass are, too. GPS is an integral
part of the world of today's pilots. Get over it.

And he'll be a safer pilot, less likely to have to make a forced
landing after his GPS fails and he runs out of fuel trying to figure
out where he is.

That scenario has nothing to do with GPS use.

And if you think it's reasonable to say a pilot is lacking skills if
he can't operate a Garmin 430, then I'll suggest you're incompetent
because you can't do celestial navigation.

Apples and oranges...

--
Thomas Borchert (EDDH)