There are HDTV's that can be had for MUCH less than thousands of dollars. I got my 32" TUBE HDTV for $299 as a refurb. It's Fan-Freakin-tastic. I have a narrow family room, so 32" is just fine. I live West North West of DC and get all the DC OTA HD channels and most of Baltimore's as well.
HDTV and free HD programming for a grand total of $299. That's hard to beat.
You are telling me to buy a smaller, refurb HDTV.
Then, you are not considering an HDTV DVR box and the cost of programming. I don't have any free HDTV programming.
I don't want a smaller TV.