It's an issue of ENORMOUS importance; repeatedly we've seen people (even politicians) shift blame for their unpreparedness from themseves to the NHC (Andrew, Charley, Katrina) with blatantly false information. First off, I hate to see undeserving people get blame, and Second off, it matters for future storms.
I'll tell you what. If people expect some kind of major evacuation process to be put into action in New Orleans every time a hurricane makes its way into the Gulf of Mexico, then we may as well get close the entire city up and move the residents somewhere else -- because a city can't function like that.