Newegg has the 280 in stock now for the staggering price of 650-700 depending on the model... the 9800/9800+ will represent an amazing value in light of this.

You miss the point. I am not as articulate as some of the other posters here who may have hit upon the topic, but I'll do what I can.

It is not that the Ashkenazi Jews are a religous group, or subset of a religious group. It is that they are a people. Basically, from somewhere shortly after the Diaspora, to the 20th century, the European Jewish community formed, and despite persecution and politically and geographically-created borders and distance among them, they have [evolved|changed] as a community, in terms of genetics, maintaining a very 'pure' bloodline. There have been studies done on the subject, and it is estimated that interbreeding between Ashkenazim and those outside the Ashkenazi community is only 0.5% per generation. A lot of this has to do with the religious law of the people, as well as other factors.

The point is not that they are a subsect of a religious group, but are what you could call a scientific 'population' that has been isolated and independent throughout the centuries. The point that Ashkenazim may have more genetically in common with Palestineans than with their European counterparts, is evidence that they _did_ maintain themselves, their people, their bloodline, their DNA, exceedingly well over the years in the face of the influence of the many European countries they have lived in and amongst.

Hope that clears things up. There's a lot of work done on the subject, some of which is linked to here. Other reading that might be suggested is "The Gift of the Jews" by Thomas Cahill or some other Irish man (if anyone knows the name, he wrote about how the Jewish community selected for intelligence by placing emphasis on ability to know and reason with the Talmud and Jewish law in marriage, and how Judaism itself might be an ingenius way to create and maintain intelligence or greatness in a people or community).

One might also wish to look into the genetic tests done on the specific tribe of Levites (priestly caste, of which I happen to be a descendent of, as per last name), and the Kohenim, endowed with more special responsibilities throughout Jewish history, who are also Levites. (all Kohenim are Levites not all Levites are Kohenim.)