[Coda]

The fact that PCs NEED to be able to upgrade hardware like that is itself an issue. You can upgrade the RAM and the hard drive, and that's all that really matters for the most part. My old MacBook was still cranking after four years and I was still able to play games just fine. (Yeah, I had to turn the graphics settings down, but still.) I only had to replace it because it finally gave out after I physically broke it when it fell out of my bag and onto the ground at the corner -- snapped the hinge on one side and KEPT WORKING for over a year before it just wore out completely.

They're not "seriously" overpriced, just expensive. The build quality is better than any PC you will ever lay your hands on and the system as a whole is built to "just work" -- unlike a PC that always needs tuning and configuring and drivers. Total cost of ownership of a Mac over its lifespan after taking into account caring for the system and including at least one OS upgrade really isn't that much higher than a PC. You're not just spending the money on the brand name. (If you want to spend money on a brand name, go look at Alienware.)

Anyway, I'm not criticizing your conclusion -- you're right to buy a PC if it runs the software you want it to run. What I'm criticizing is your criticism: blanket statements like that don't help anything get better.