As Hurricane Gustav continues to move inland and weaken from its earlier Category 2 (Winds 96-110 mph) state, millions of residents and evacuees are crossing their fingers, hoping Gustav’s wrath will pale in comparison to that of Hurricane Katrina.

Although triple-digit mile-per-hour winds, moderate storm surge and flooding rains are nothing to take lightly, those affected by Gustav have plenty to be thankful for already.

For one thing, Gustav is far-removed from its peak intensity, which was reached late Saturday as it tore through the Caribbean with 150 mile-per-hour winds, killing 94 people. With higher gusts of 200 miles-per-hour, Gustav became the strongest hurricane to hit west Cuba in 60 years.

Fortunately upper-level wind shear and an unforeseen encounter with some drier mid-level air due to a shift in position from a nearby area of high pressure kept Gustav from strengthening as it raced through the warm waters of the loop current in the Gulf of Mexico.

Although severe damage is expected along Louisiana’s central coast, conditions could have been much worse, considering many forecasts made before this past weekend indicated a high likelihood that Gustav would strike as a Category 4 storm, which would have made it stronger at landfall than Hurricane Katrina.

But Mother Nature apparently had alternate plans, and unlike the plethora of devastating storms of 2004 and 2005, Gustav is actually cooperating.

In addition to Gustav defying earlier forecasts for the better, oil prices are already taking a turn for the better. Grant Smith and Alexander Kwiatkowski from Bloomberg TV stated that oil prices are declining due to Gustav being downgraded, which in itself is relieving damage fears.

Current forecasts take Gustav northwest, straight through the heart of Louisiana, over the next few days, where the storm is expected to decrease in momentum and speed. Flooding could be a major problem for north-central Louisiana headed into southern Arkansas, where up to 15 inches of rain may fall.