Jim both you and Steve make interesting points. But:

Good Governance requires a strong opposition to make the ruling party accountable, otherwise it will ride roughshod over everyone.
The government as an entity will survive no matter what the social cost. Do you seriously believe all the propaganda thrown out about the war on terror or is it just a subterfuge to enable the government to keep tabs on the citizenry. Why is this paramount? Is it because government sees a future when they can no longer hide the fact that jobs are evaporating far faster than they can be replaced? Could it be they are scared? It is very convenient to have Mr Putin as the neighbourhood bogyman as an excuse curtail freedom and spy on everyone. They have looked at the future and to quote the add, If it is bright and orange it is probably from flames fanned by an outraged citizenry.
We cannot return to the days of the Luddites, we have built a technological civilisation. The concomitant result of this is that as systems get more complex they require far less manpower and become far more vulnerable.
    Neither of you appear to distinguish clearly between economic cost and social cost- two very different entities.
What could be, should be, would be are entirely different animals when considered from the social and economic perspectives.
    There are conversations that should be in the public   domain to indicate why certain decisions are made and what social costs are attached. Unfortunately we have a political system where integrity and accountability are alien concepts and tomorrow is regarded as the same as yesterday and last year...... and forward planning is simply to be re elected. How does society remain cohesive when unemployment is rife and ever accelerating. How do people remain engaged, housed and fed?
    The low hanging fruit of cheap fuel has already been plucked and squandered, the climate is changing and further accentuated by human activity. We are destroying our environment and society is gently coming to the boil. We have massive migrations occurring because of drought and war(many of which revolve around energy and it's distribution)
      You can be certain that government is aware of these things.
What you should be asking is what are their nefarious plans for us?
If you feel certain sectors of society are being abandoned now,where do you think we will be when the scenarios above kick in?
It will nor be Mad Max but you can be sure it will not be utopia either.