Paths are rendered only once, and the imageData is cached for redrawing. Redrawing a single path requires one clearRect, putImageData and drawImage call so the net effect seems slower than simply rerendering that paths with moveTo/lineTo.
Modified http://mbostock.github.com/d3/d3.v2.js to a secure url
https://mbostock.github.com/d3/d3.v2.js