I find it interesting that Prius is in it's third generation, starting in 1997 in Japan, 2001 in the rest of the world and people are still amazed, in love , envious, and hateful about this vehicle in a way that you do not see with other cars. Interesting......
Perhaps the Lexus HS 250 would have been more to your liking?? It should be quieter, I know my Camry Hybrid is much quieter than the Prius. The 2010 Prius is also quieter than the previous generation and tires will have an impact. My Gen II Prius was quieter after getting rid of the OEM Goodyear tires and replacing with Michelin MXV4. You can also install Dynamat on the doors and floor and that will drop the noise levels considerably.
My 2004 PT Cruiser got more attention than my 2010 Prius. Not sure why. I've been on the receiving end of some disdain for my Prius...mostly from Rush Limbaugh/Glen Beck listeners.
I live in an area where most people drive pickup trucks and SUVs and I imagine a few of them listen to right wing talk radio too. This is my second Prius, when I bought my '05 there were only two of them in this area. There are quite a few Prius owners now. But despite the profusion of pickup trucks and a general distrust of big government I have never been subject to any impolite comments or actions concerning either one of my Prius. What I do see is a lot of honest curiosity and open minded questions. But people who live in this area tend to be a little "old fashion" and reasonably polite. If some of the rest of you don't have those kinds of neighbors and fellow citizens I'm sorry for you. But I don't think it has much to do with political opinions, at least not in this area.