[cherry]

there have been two major blackouts in NYC...each time IIRC the people peacefully all walked home or to their cars....there were no buses, no trains, no subways...and then during 911, the people of NYC responded very well....

however, if you work in a bad part of town, and everything goes kaput, I'd be very scared...

[3Fingas]

While NYC is certainly safer now than it was in the mid 70s, it won’t stay that way long if the SHTF in a prolonged way. Sandy was very instructive for many who stayed there. I have family in both NY and NJ. All of them took precautions having food, water, and full gas tanks. My uncle and my father both had generators. These precautions helped my family get through the power outages better than most (power was not restored to them for at least 1 week). However, I learned a lot from talking to them. One thing that I have now in my preps that I didn’t have before is cash. While the power is down, there are no ATMS. Stores and restaurants that manage to stay open can’t process debit cards or credit cards. However, they can take cash. So, cash is king if the power is out and Mad Max is not yet ruling the streets.

[Kartographer]

I think that your experience with the 'blackouts' is basically what you can expect especially at first, but it's what follows that will determine what peoples' reaction is going to be. There is something called Normalcy Bias and many peoples first reaction will be that nothing is really wrong or someone usually the 'Gubbermint' will be along shortly to 'fix' things. It is in this short window where a prepper must evaluate and make decisions such as 'bugging out' or 'forting up'.

But once the true situation becomes reveled and people realize that no one is coming to fix what's wrong and just how wrong things are that's where the panic, anger, and fear come out and all of these reaction just like in the jungle are what draw out the predators and once they come out all bets are off, because there's just dead air when you call 911.

I often getting chided about posting the following quote to much:

"Let me tell you something about humans, nephew: They're a wonderful, friendly people - as long as their bellies are full and their holosuites are working." "But take away their creature comforts, deprive them of food, sleep, sonic showers, put their lives in jeopardy over an extended period of time and those friendly, intelligent, wonderful people...will become as nasty and as violent as the most blood-thirsty klingon." Quark from: The Siege of AR-558 (#7.8)" (1998)

   To those that feel that way let me point out a quote from this news story:

Exasperation builds on Day 3 in storm-stricken NYC
By LEANNE ITALIE and MEGHAN BARR | Associated Press – Thu, Nov 1, 2012

In darkened neighborhoods, people walked around with miner's lamps on their foreheads and bicycle lights clipped to shoulder bags and, in at least one case, to a dog's collar. A Manhattan handyman opened a fire hydrant so people could collect water to flush toilets. "You can clearly tell at the office, or even walking down the street, who has power and who doesn't," said Jordan Spiro, who lives in the blackout zone. "New Yorkers may not be known as the friendliest bunch, but take away their ability to shower and communicate and you'll see how disgruntled they can get."

Sounds familiar doesn't it?

[Old Sarge]

Dude, do you recall the mayhem of the 1977 NYC blackout?

Even Wikipedia mentions it...