You mean "Moi"?
 I dunno, guys and gals, but I always found that when driving in the snow and ice, if you need a "steer/stop" reaction from your vehicle, both at the same moment, you likely are going off the road.  You can get one or the other but not both simultaneously.(unless you are very skilled and light with your inputs)  You must snow-drive to avoid that type of driving situation, or you are surely going to be one of those "snow idiots". 
 Your tires only have so much traction.  Period.  Like your bank account only has so much money in it.  You can make withdrawals up to the limit of your traction "account" (just like your bank account) but once it's used up, you are "overdrawn" .  If you are using nearly all your traction to slow as you approach a hazard and you ask your front tires for more to make a turn, too...You will over draw on your traction account and become a passenger in your own vehicle.  Modern ABS systems help with this, but the Limit is the Limit..ABS is like a charge-card...it helps short term when you 'jab the brakes' but you still have to 'balance your traction account' and "pay it off" before the bottom of that hill or that stopsign or that semi that is cross-wise down the road in front of you.
  Snow tires are configured to help with straight-ahead traction.  So having some on the front may give you slightly more straight line braking traction but I've never found them especially good at helping you steer.  And if you try to steer and brake simultaneously..you're asking for trouble..
  Studded winter tires on all four wheels DO make sense to me.  That kinda setup is great on ice and packed snow at winter highway speeds.  So, if you want to run four  regular snow tires on a Van it might not be a total waste of money, I guess...But I have found, and I have tried 4 snows a couple of times, that having snow treads on the front makes no difference in a 2wd/rwd vehicle.  YMMV
  Don Hanson
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Jake de Villiers 
  To: Don Hanson 
  Cc: vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com 
  Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2008 7:47 PM
  Subject: Re: Snow newbie needs snow tire recommendation

  Some of those 'snow-idiots' are the ones with winter tires on the drive axle but not on their steer/stop axle!  :-)

  On Wed, Aug 27, 2008 at 3:18 PM, Don Hanson <dhanson@gorge.net> wrote:

    ----------------------------------------------------------------------

    Date:    Wed, 27 Aug 2008 12:13:13 -0400
    From:    Dennis Haynes <d23haynes57@HOTMAIL.COM>
    Subject:

    And do get all 4.

    Dennis

    -----Original Message-----
    From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
    Mike Elliott

    Sent: Wednesday, August 27, 2008 11:50 AM
    To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM

    Subject: Re: Snow newbie needs snow tire recommendation

    So I hear. Just gotta find some here in Bend.
    --

    Mike "Rocket J Squirrel" Elliott

     If you have extra money you want to spend, Dennis may be right, but I've
    never seen the need to put snow tires on non-drive wheels.  25 years of
    winters in Jackson Hole, Wy. where winter is long and roads aren't plowed
    that well.
     If you get studded tires, then yes, get four..If you drive a Syncro, get
    four.  Otherwise, normal tires with a good tread will work just as well and
    aren't usually so pricey as Hakepelitikas (sp?)..
      Take your van to a deserted driving venue and experiment with it in the
    snow and on the ice.  Learn how to drive it in slick conditions, but be very
    aware that you'll encounter other 'snow-idiots' who have not a clue as to
    how to behave on snowy roads...and drive 'defensively...
     Don Hanson

  -- 
  Jake 
  1984 Vanagon GL
  1986 Westy Weekender "Dixie"
  Crescent Beach, BC
  www.crescentbeachguitar.com
  http://subyjake.googlepages.com/mydixiedarlin%27