Hmmmm, I bought a 42" 1080p LCD in June of 2007 for $999. VERY much lower than your $3000 price tag. Perhaps you should look to see what's out there now. You appear to be quoting prices from mid-2006 with respect to the TVs. Though you appear to be A LOT closer with the prices of the bluray players.
Ah, I note that you have LCD. The new sets are all LED, whatever that means. I was told that they weren’t going to make LCDs any longer.