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I don't know, has Steyn become merely an Oracle of Despair?

Supply is called forth by demand. Let's face it: there's a real and evergreen demand for pointing out (or claiming) that the current big-government system is rotten. There's not just one brand, but two. Those who believe that the system is rotten because the government hasn't clamped down hard enough can sign up with the viros and get their doomsaying through the global-warming claque. All of which sing their supper, as they've gotten mucho financing from the government as well as easy media placement and a prestige/influence that's a lot harder to earn without recourse to politics.

On our side, there's a huge demand for doom-and-gloom because it reinforces our hunches that big government entails misgovernment.

I don't know where all this is going to end up. Suffice it to say, widespread demand for doom-and-gloom does not say much that's good for the present order. The people whose fortunes and pride are tied in with the established order can keep muddling along by playing off one set of doomsayers against the other - you know, the old "two extremes" dodge - but the long-term consequence is a decline in confidence in the system as a whole. That doesn't bode well for the system, muddle along as it does.

When you're effectively cut off from power, you don't have the luxury of assuming that "liberty" equates to "having the muscle on my side" (as so many liberals do.) You have to think of ways of minimizing the effects of said muscle on your own life.

And that's quite a chore, given the pervasiveness of government. Needless to say, getting the government's muscle over to your side is not a feasible option, leaving aside the moral qualms that advantage would bring up. The present system's too rigged against that.

One way to cope is to bust your arse to get rich. This option only makes sense if you think that America is going to degenerate into a Latin-American-style republic, complete with a ruling class whose left wing is chock-full of guilt-ridden limousine liberals and whose "centre" is full of moneyed and well-connected people whose ambitions to remake society have outstripped their wallets. If this fate be America's, then poorer folks - including good Christian folks - will be little more than peons. "Democracy" will be little more than a chess game where the living chess pieces are flattered and bribed to not run over to the other player's side.

On the other hand, there's the option of the hardcore prepper. Given current Americanism, it's actually the harder road to take. The prepper route consists of to minimizing dependence on a rotten big-government-ridden economy, which entails living a poor and somewhat isolated life. Wealth should be pursued carefully, so as to minimize dependence upon a rotten system. The benefits of specialization are abjured for resourcefulness.

A human being should be able to change a diaper, plan an invasion, butcher a hog, conn a ship, design a building, write a sonnet, balance accounts, build a wall, set a bone, comfort the dying, take orders, give orders, cooperate, act alone, solve equations, analyze a new problem, pitch manure, program a computer, cook a tasty meal, fight efficiently, die gallantly. Specialization is for insects.
-Robert A. Heinlen, through his character Lazarus Long.

This approach is hazardous if America's going to turn into Latin America. Preppers will become mere peons, and will be looked down on as such.

On the other hand: prepping is the way to go if the big-government system turns dysfuctional, if it falls apart. Should this happen, the preppers will have the needed skills to not only survive but also to rebuild society on a stronger basis.

Thirdly, there's the option of bailing out and becoming what Doug Casey calls a "permanent tourist." It resolves the dilemma personally, if you can afford or risk it, but it's not an option for the civic-minded. Nor is it for anyone who sees it as turning tail and running.

Of course, there's also the option of keeping up with the doomsaying and trying to find happiness in other areas of life. Confining the prepping to paying off the debts and keeping a store of food and cash in case of an emergency; grit the teeth at tax time, put up with regulators and revenue-seeking cops, draw strength through prayer, keep politicking in the hopes of winning, and otherwise make the best of a bad situation. This option actually plays in to the rulers' hands: they're already well-primed to see everything you guys point out as merely disguised complaints that can be bought off. The advantage with this approach comes with democracy: although the game is rigged as of now, that tilt will change should you win enough political battles.

The point I'm making is: eventually, the demand for doomsaying will turn into making life plans to cope with the expected fallout. We can't live on a steady diet of bitters.