Hurricane Dean Will Spare America, Probably

But the places hit by Dean will suffer mightily: Jamaica, the Cayman Islands and Mexico are in big trouble. As I said before, pray for Jamaica. And others are praying, too.

If you're an American in Mexico, vacationing, get out:

In addition, airport officials at Cancun and Cozumel were contacting airlines to ask that flights be canceled and diverted, Gonzalez said. He added 60,000 tourists had been scheduled to arrive along Mexico's Caribbean coast this weekend.

Gonzalez said it was hoped that passenger planes would arrive nearly empty and be able to carry out tourists who wish to leave. Many foreign tourists arrive in Cancun and nearby resorts on package plans, which run weekend to weekend.

I don't know what kind of person would head toward this disaster. This is one time to leave that American can-do spirit for helping those who need it afterward. And they will need help:

The short-term intensity forecast is a bit uncertain given the
double eyewall structure...but the central pressure is quite low and
the inner core could quickly reorganize at any time...so any dip in
the intensity will probably be short-lived. Throughout its stay in
the Caribbean Sea during the next 48 hours or so...atmospheric and
oceanic conditions remain supportive of a category four or five
intensity as suggested by all of the objective guidance. Since the
new track forecast results in a longer stay over the Yucatan
Peninsula...the official intensity forecast has been lowered
slightly over the southwestern Gulf of Mexico...but still indicates
a major hurricane at final landfall.