The reason all of that will happen is not because of the initial attack, but because the success of the initial attack will make future attacks a certainty. Americans, deep in their "government will protect me from monsters" mindset, will simply abandon their urban civil service jobs when they realize that every city is vulnerable. This isn't the WWII generation. In modern American cities, it's every man for himself.
"Lucifer's Hammer" by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle is a good blueprint for what might happen. It's about a comet hitting the Earth, but the human behavior described in the aftermath is exactly what we will see after a nuclear attack.
You're damn skippy this isn't the WWII generation. The WWII generation are all down Florida at the El Boca Vista Condominiums, Phase III, demanding more Social Security, more Medicare, free prescriptions, and with the housing market tanking they'll want to be bailed out of their ARM's by the next Administration. I just can't afford to save another helpless New Orleans AND the WWII generation.
“”Lucifer’s Hammer” by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle is a good blueprint for what might happen. It’s about a comet hitting the Earth, but the human behavior described in the aftermath is exactly what we will see after a nuclear attack.”
Have you read “Alas, Babylon”? Many Florida high schoolers read it. Amazon has over 250 reviews of the book. Another recent catclysmic book and Pulitzer prize winner,”The Road”, is even more disturbing.