Don't let Best Buy steal your lunch money.

I'm horrified! I just witnessed something sickening, something that shook me to my very core. I don't know who to tell about this terrible atrocity, so I turn to you my trusted friend "teh internets". Before we begin, I recommend you prepare your airsick bag, because this will be a bumpy flight...

So, I was perusing through Best Buy trying to dodge conversation with any members of their woefully under trained staff when... What?... What's that you ask? "What was I there to buy?" Don't be a fool, I wasn't going to buy anything there. I'm well aware of the ridiculous markup on everything they sell. Sometimes I just need to take in the aroma of freshly stocked gadgets. Now, shhhh.

Anyway, back to the story, I decided to take a stroll down the aisle of TV's, to bask in their glorious high definition rays, when I caught sight of something that stopped me dead in my tracks. There were 3 men standing in the aisle, one of them in street cloths, the other two in slacks and blue polo shirts with yellow name tags, both sporting faux hawks. (Best Buy cronies, as you have no doubt guessed). One of the blue clad men was holding the guys arms behind his back, while the other brutally tortured him with rhetorical questions. "You like high def, don't 'cha?" The man let out a sheepish "Uh huh". "You want the best quality from that expensive new TV you just bought, don't 'cha?". Visibly shaking, the man managed to muster up a reply: "Well, yes, of course". "Well then, you ain't got no other choice then to buy these here Monster Cables!" In unison, the blue shirts belted out into maniacal laughter. The man gulped hard and then slowly started reaching for the Cables he'd been "offered". Then he paused, "But, if I spend all my money on these cables, what will my kids eat for dinner?" The laughter stopped immediately and turned to bone chilling silence. The chief blue shirt bared his teeth and brought his face within inches of the man, who now started to whimper. Then in a very low, menacing tone "But, if you don't spend all your money on these cables, what will your kids watch after they eat dinner." The man had had all that he could take. His knees buckled and he slumped into a quivering pile on the floor. "OK! OK! I'll buy 'em." The roar of laughter started up again. But, it was short lived...

Up until this point I had been looking on in horrified disbelief, but overwhelming pity for the bullied and now crying man laying on the floor in front of me roused me from my trance. I wasted no time: "Hey" I yelled down the aisle. That's all it took. The blue shirt stopped, mid chuckle and cast their gazes at me, the one who had dared to challenge them. "Your threats won't work here, I'm a real nerd" I threatened. They could tell I wasn't bluffing. My confident stance was enough to assure them of my technical prowess. "What have double blind test shown about the quality of those cables compared to others?" I asked, with an obvious note of condescension in my voice. The blue shirts exchanged worried glances. I started toward them but I hadn't made it three steps when the lesser lackey reached for something hidden in his faux hawk and threw it to the floor. Upon impact it created a cloud of blue smoke into which both blue shirts disappeared. "Good riddance" I muttered proudly.

Having banished the "salesmen" back to their secret break room lair, I turned my attention to the poor man still lying on the floor. "Are you OK, sir?" He stared at me blankly, obviously shaken from the ghastly experience that had just befallen him. He started lowly mumbling. I could only catch fragments of what he was saying "gotta have 'em", "there's no other option", "oxygen free wires" and other nonsense that had obviously been forced into his mind. "What's your name?" I prodded gently. "Uh..." a long pause "Frank... I think". "Well Frank" I assured him, "everything is going to be OK, because these over hyped wallet drainers aren't you're only option. There's another way."

I then went on to explain to him the great wonders of Monoprice.com. I explained that how as a wholesaler, Monoprice is able to cut out the middle man and sell to you direct. And how they can afford to offer even lower prices by not spending tons of money on fancy packaging (you know, those hard plastic shells you throw away as soon as you've pried them off with the "Jaws of Life"). I explained that at Monoprice, you can afford to by HDMI cables for all of the components in your system without taking out a lone. How banana plugs aren't just for people who drive Bentleys. And how quality USB cables should cost cents, not dollars.

However, Frank (obviously still under the influence of the blue haze) objected. "I don't want to use some crappy, low-end cables with my expensive quality components". But I explained to Frank that Monoprice doesn't cut corners on their cables and in fact they are usually larger gauge, and have more shielding than any cable you'll find at a big box store. Also, I told him how their website has tons of user reviews, so he can see what other people are saying about their products.

"Sounds too good to be true, what's the catch? It's the shipping isn't it? They always get you on the shipping". However, I explained that Monoprice has very reasonable shipping rates and even after adding shipping your savings will still be substantial. But if you're in a hurry they have several rush shipping options, including "next day".

I could see the relief on Franks face. "Joelslaw, how can I ever repay you for what you've done?". "Just spread the word Frank, just spread the word... and read my blog..." :-D

Please, don't be a victim, shop at Monoprice:
http://www.monoprice.com/