It also depends on WHERE you choose to burn your RDMs. For example, flying US domestic, there are lots of choices, all within a general level of service (no real LCCs flying, except for WN, which is kind of one). If I need to fly to New York for a bowl of ramen and a pastrami sandwich, I have several choices to pay for a flight. Generally it is unlikely that I will burn 25/50K RDMs for a flight when I can purchase a flight and accrue EQM or points on whatever airline I wind up on.

However, when I'm in Singapore, eating chili crab and roti prata, flying inter-Asia can get ridiculous (SQ)or hella cheap (AK, 3K, etc). I'm not going to pay for a flight to HKG (where I can have the best wontonmein and dim sum) that will cost the same price as my SFO-SIN flight, purchased Economy but usually SWUd. Then again, if I fly the LCCs, no status means no lounge and luggage restrictions. But I can burn 30K RDMs for C (or 20K for Y) on SQ. To me that's leveraging value! And gets me into the SKL!

As the Jedi say, "it depends on your point of view"