I'm pretty far from the effects of H. Irene, but one tidbit I saw in a NOAA forecast put an interesting slant on wind speed that I hadn't considered: that actual windspeed can be ~20% higher at an elevation of ~100-200 ft. Basically hurricane windspeed goes up with elevation, and alot of NYC lives at higher elevations, in buildings etc. I have it on my list to check with responders who deployed to Manhattan to see whether this was factored in to low lying area evacuation orders, or if the evacuation was based on projected storm surge, or both. The estimates I saw for storm surge were enough to prompt the evacuation orders imho. Despite the lower storm surge experienced, the idea that all those folks in all those high rises having the resources to get along come monday morning was a crap shoot. Although I have to say, god bless the bodegas - they stayed open to the last minute. NYers are tough...

Plenty of damage and danger to go around, wait for the storm to pass and the basic accounting to take place. Mr. NuggetHoarder, your observations are your amygdalae talking, nothing to worry about. Most folks on this forum can resist some powerful neurological denials, built up over millions of years, and take action to prepare for disasters, and avoid unseen dangers. Most people can't. Our brains actually evolved that way as a survival mechanism I think - never underestimate the power of denial. Our brains tell us not to worry when we really should, because on balance, there are more Irenes than there are Katrinas - so you may be right, and we might be too, its a conundrum. I think layering on political overtones to hurricane response is a pretty weak case though. When you're on the beach you either walk out into the rapidly receding tides to collect the pretty shells, or you run like hell for high ground.