In support of your view, we could note a lot of AOs say something just like that!
But I also think a lot of people seem to just forget that these colleges are not in fact handing out gold stars for high school achievement, they are actually trying to continually renew a vibrant college community. So, every year, students who did arts, or journalism, or club sports, or debate, or on and on are graduating, and they need to be replaced. In fact, often those graduating seniors ended up taking on important leadership positions, and while they will immediately be replaced mostly by rising juniors and such, eventually those people also need to be replaced by new students.
Once you really think about what it takes to accomplish that task, I think it becomes clear why the things you listed are so important to them. If you were just checking a box to get admitted to college, will you really keep it up in college? Will you be a fun and inspiring co-participant in college activities, and ultimately a leader in your time?
Again there are many different activities, and so there are many different ways of answering these questions positively. But I really think some people would benefit from thinking like an AO who actually needs to figure out how to find great students who will ALSO keep all these activities rolling.
Which again, to circle back, is not something a high test score can address. Indeed, it isn’t in the same category at all. So while it has its place, at least for the most selective colleges, it won’t likely be a consideration when they are trying to figure out which applicants will be the best bets to satisfy this sort of mandate.