I agree with your points. We ran into a situation with our youngest - offered full ride (all expenses, housing, books) at honors college in a state college in neighboring state with highly ranked program in their area of interest. They were excited, but then they were offered admission into a highly selective LAC that meets need, and gave them an offer that we could afford without debt or hardship. 
Yes, it’s more expensive than free - but we are comfortable with the decision and they are having a wonderful experience. We know what we are paying for, and clearly see the value - having nothing to do with rankings, prestige etc… The day to day experience has been exceptional for my student.
Every family has to decide for themselves how to spend money, but the thing that bothered me about this article was what I said above - it seems like the schools are trying to “trick” families, into assigning value or prestige to the school that is trying to build a brand, rather than actually saving families money. When we first started looking at schools, people suggested that we “chase merit”, because we had a clear budget - but we found it seemed like a rabbit hole, not what was promised, and our kids found better “bargains” in other ways. I understand that some people have different experiences and do find value in the “merit” available from these schools. There is a path for everyone
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