Traditionalists might balk, but the holiday shopping season is already underway. Skeptical? Head to your local department store and you'll be inundated by Christmas trees and ornaments. Bargain hunters, though, know that the real deals are more than a month away.
Black Friday, traditionally, is when retailers truly slash prices. Early birds can save hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars off of their holiday bills. Switched.com checked with a few elves, who gave a sneak peek at what you can expect deal-wise this year.
Blu-ray Players and Movies: Blu-ray is shaping up to be the biggest door buster of this year's Black Friday. de Grandpre expects at least one retailer will offer a Blu-ray player for just $49. Look for bargains on Blu-ray films as well, with last year's hit titles (such as "Iron Man") to fall as low as $5.
Laptops: With the proliferation of Netbooks this year, it's never been easier to find affordable portable computing, but Dan de Grandpre, CEO of DealNews.com says it will get even cheaper on Black Friday. Look for well-equipped Netbooks to sell for $199 – and basic 15" laptops to go for as little as $249.
HDTVs (Pretty big): The holidays are typically the best time to buy a new TV – and Black Friday is the time to do it. If you're looking for a normal sized set, you're in luck. Piper Jaffrey analyst Mitch Kaiser says he expects to see 32-inch LCD sets for as low as $299. GottaDeal.com is estimating 37-inch plasma and LCD sets will fall to $399 or less.
HDTVs (Really big): Need something bigger? How about a 46-47 inch LCD set for $599 – a 25 percent savings? Or a 52-inch LCD for $999? Dealnews says you can expect both. Plasma deals will be a little harder to come by, but a 50-inch set should run roughly $899.
HD Camcorders: You've wanted to shoot your child's school play in HD for a while, but haven't been able to spring for the pricey camcorder. This might be the year. Low-end, flash-based 720p models could drop as low as $60 (though you won't be able to zoom with those). Expect a high quality 1080p HD camcorder for $349.
GPS: While navigation systems have dramatically expanded their reach this year – even making it onto the iPhone – there's still a market for car-based systems. Dealnews predicts you'll be able to find a no-name entry-level system for $49, while a Garmin or Tom-Tom brand will be as low as $69.
Digital Picture Frames: Showcasing your digital pictures consistently gets cheaper. This year, skip the 7-inch screens and focus on the 8- or 9-inch ones, which should be available on Black Friday for as little as $30.
Monitors: Computer monitors might not be the sexiest of gifts, but they're usually welcomed with open arms – and they'll be cheap this year. Name brand 22-inch LCD models may go for as low as $99, while 24-inch models will drop below $150.
Memory: Don't know anyone who needs a monitor? External hard drives are always popular, since they're an easy way to back-up data. Dealnews expects a 1TB drive to fall as low as $49 this year. Gottadeal is looking for 8GB flash drives to hit $15.
Chances are you've seen some documentary or movie about nuclear war in which missile silos were represented as being kept in impregnable, well-guarded bunkers. Said fictional silos were also protected by secret codes that were frequently refreshed and (we all hope) never needed in the case of a nuclear attack. 
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Tommy said 11:12PM on 7-25-2008
Just more evidence of the trend toward a gentler more permissive military.
And what happens to them? Fire them? Naaa wont happen. Broken system.
TG
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retro77 said 5:22PM on 7-25-2008
It was only 3 out of the 4 guards where sleeping.
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Serena said 2:38PM on 7-26-2008
Oh yeah, real responsible guys.
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mike said 3:20PM on 7-26-2008
WHAT HAPPENED TO DONT ASK DONT TELL......
hey blue boy give me a light ehhhh....ick
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Roland Boyce said 3:35PM on 7-26-2008
First and foremost sleeping while on duty is a court martial offense. They should all be in the brig right now. Secondly what the hell good would out dated launch codes do us in a real situation where launch was required. That's totally unacceptable for national defense. Sounds like something OBAMA would do.
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Dusty said 7:47PM on 7-26-2008
Except Obama is not the one in charge. Now just WHO IS in CHARGE? Oh yes, George Walker Bush. The one that is keeping America "safer", Guess having them guard outdated code is keeping America safer from attacking itself. Given that Bush is in charge, that sounds more likely than an attack from an outside source.
Kat said 4:23PM on 7-26-2008
Hey, Roloand... Obama isn't in office yet... This is BUSH's boys baby!
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Wolfster said 4:55PM on 7-26-2008
Roland, you twit. It was GW Bush who was derelict in his service, who left his detail repeatedly and refuses to this day to tell where he went, who partied and shirked and smirked while others died. Learn to tell the diff between your a$$ and an a$$hole sleeping on duty.
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NOBAMA08 said 5:16PM on 7-26-2008
At least "BUSH" & "MCAIN" served our country while OSAMA(OBAMA) was knealing on his prayer rug I'm sure or maybe adjusting his TOWEL on his head getting advise from a GOD that does NOT even exist.haha
tomgaj said 5:07PM on 7-26-2008
Too bad the author didn't read all the reports on the incident or at least do a little fact checking:
- The incident occurred in a missile alert facility (MAF), not the launch capsule.
- The MAF itself is a secure and guarded area monitored and entry controlled by armed guards (not by the crew members).
- The component itself was secured in a lockbox inside the secure area.
- The four oficers involved was an off-duty crew that did not have the ability to access or launch missiles.
- At least one crew member did the right thing and remained awake.
These guys are definitely in trouble for failing to follow correct procedures to properly secure classified material, but the problem that occurred is not what this article portrays it to be.
But then, I suppose, one should never let the facts get in the way of a sensational story...
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ACHILLAS said 5:11PM on 7-26-2008
YEAH, YEAH! I DON'T BELIEVE IT, IT IS ANOTHER TRICK THAT THEY ARE USING TO GET US TO BELIEVE THAT WE NEED CONTROL OF IRAN AND OTHER COUNTRIES THAT HAVE NUCLEAR WEAPONS. DON'T YOU KNOW THAT THEY ARE PUSHING FOR A NEW WORLD ORDER! AND IT'S ALL ABOUT CONTROL! PLEASE! NO BODY IN THEIR RIGHT MINDS WOULD BE SNOOZING IF THEY HAD THE CODES AND KEYS TO NUCLEAR WARHEADS! NA! LIKE I SAID IT'S CONTROL THAT THE ILLUMINATI WANTS THEY HAVE ALL THE MONEY IN THE WORLD, THEY WANT CONTROL AND THEY WANT THE WORLD TO BOW DOWN TO THEM FOR SECURITY AND HUMAN NEEDS. SOUND'S CRAZZY! WELL, THEY ARE BEHIND THE NEW WORLD ORDER! READ ABOUT IT! AND BELIEVE.
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NOBAMA08 said 5:19PM on 7-26-2008
NOBAMA served ONLY himself & NOT the U.S.A.
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ken said 5:28PM on 7-26-2008
Too bad these folks were negligent. The Air Force will deal with them if liable. Should they be officers- careers over. If NCO's busted and find another job in civilian life. Sounds as though this story is overblown though.
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RETIRED 777 CAPT said 5:27PM on 7-26-2008
AHHHHH, THE GOOD OLD DAYS. I REMEMBER WHEN I WAS IN THE NAVY, AND THEY GAVE A KID A WHISTLE, AND TOLD TO STAND AT THE END OF THE RUNWAY. IF A PLANE CAME IN TO LAND WITH HIS WHEELS STILL RETARCTED, HE WAS TO BLOW THE WHISTLE.
WHEN ONE DID COME IN WITH THE WHEELS STILL IN THE WELLS, HE JUST WATCHED IT LAND WHEELS UP. (E-2B, OCEANA VA. 1974) THEY TRIED TO COURT MARSHAL THE KID, UNTIL THE FACTS ABOUT THE WHISTLE CAME OUT. CAN YOU SAY "UNDER THE RUG?" TIME CHANGES, BUT NOTHING ELSE.
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Bob said 6:11PM on 7-26-2008
Tim Stevens really doesn't know what he's talking about. It seems true that he just wants a story to make a name for himself without really knowing how things work. As a missileer, I know this incident happened during what's known as a code change. The old codes taken from the launch control center (LCC) would do no damage to anything since they were obsolete. The codes were stored in a code handling container with 2 locks on it and the container was in a room on a missile alert facility (MAF). The MAF is guarded by people with guns... good luck to anyone trying to get access. There is no way anyone could get access to those obsolete codes. With that said... the crew members were wrong to fall asleep but with one crew member awake... the others would be woken instantly if something went wrong on the MAF which it didn't. BTW... the crew members are officers.
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Don said 6:27PM on 7-26-2008
I didn't know they hired Mexicans
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John Casy said 7:49PM on 7-26-2008
Bush is a screw up so what can you expect from these guards.
And I bet those launch codes were good....
Can't beleive the goverment..
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Jay said 7:52PM on 7-26-2008
Forget the sleeping guards. If their codes wouldn't work anyway, why do we have them sitting there?
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ME said 8:01PM on 7-26-2008
Y R U GUYS MAKING THIS ABOUT OBAMA AND MCCAIN AND BUSH? THIS IS ABOUT SOME GUYS TAKING A NAP, SO CHILL. IT WON'T KILL YA, I BET MY LIFE U'LL SAY IT WILL, BUT IT WON'T. PEOPLE WHO THINK THIS AN OUTRAGE OR THEY SHOULD GO TO JAIL OR WAHT NOT: HAVEN'T YOU EVER LET DOWN A RESPONSIBILITY? HOW ABOUT NEXT YOU WANNA TAKE A NAP WE PUT A STORY WITH THE HEADLINE: (WO)MAN TAKES NAP, ARRESTED IMMEDIATLY
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E. L. Mitchell said 4:05PM on 9-06-2008
NO ONE can get into the launch control center to launch a missile until the crew (2) on duty opens theimpregnable blast door from inside. Guys upstairs with outdated codes are no big deal. The only thing compromised (if someone had stolen the locked box) would be the format and construction of the code documents which is already known by anyone having previously served on a launch crew (bomber or missile). Total disinformation -- sleep well tonight!!
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