I second u/Muncie4 's assessment of Rowenta. Distinctly better quality than others that I have tried (i.e. Sunbeam, Black and Decker and other typical U.S. based brands, though they are all made in China now.) Better is defined by quick and even heat across the full surface, which leads to faster and easier ironing. Never had a problem with dependability.

Actually, if you look at my post, the nesting will show that I was not replying to you, but rather to a person who was just saying that hearing about the EMS working made them scared.

I would not have said that to you, having lived in The Village in the 1970s/80s when there were many odd/dangerous people there (as well as many criminals who were very dangerous throughout NYC). Being afraid is part of what makes you safer (though not safe) and you seem to be making very good decisions when confronted with those people. Since you responded to my comment, what I wanted to say to you is that when it gets to the point where you are not willing to go out, you may have tipped into depression (not surprising given the last several years) and you may want to seek professional assistance.

That story really shouldn't scare you -- you are falling prey to a very common bias: it's in the news and heavily covered so you are overestimating the risk. What you should be scared about is being hit by a car (pedestrian deaths are much more common. So common that they aren't covered in the news and so you don't worry about it.) You are much more likely to be hit by a falling branch or falling construction debris and be seriously injured or killed. Don't let the news make you scared. That was a very rare case, but rare stuff does occur -- just rarely.