should the scripts create directories that don't exist?

[ndushay]

This is bad on the deployed box, because it means

• directories might be created in unexpected places
• we don't have things set up properly for deployment (e.g. mounted dirs or capistrano linked_dirs)

On a local box, the first point above still applies ...

[dazza-codes]

The directories should be checked and, if they do not exist, exit the script. (If there can be no harm in creating them below a given root/data path, then create them.)