Not for everyone, but considering only price constraints, you might consider the Toshiba Satellite offered for $299 at Best Buy. Celeron processor, 2 Gb RAM, 160 Gb HD, DVD burner, 15" screen. They were in plentiful supply at my local store.
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.