Yup, I understand your confusion, though I wouldn't go so far as say 'bait and switch' as this mimics most other airline policies.

The only fare level that is fully flexible is Comfort Latitude. All others have varying levels of fees for change and cancellation.

Basic however is pretty much set in stone. The fee for changing or cancelling is basically most of the price of the ticket. Last time I tried to change a basic fare for a friend to a credit to be used on another flight. An $1,100 ticket ended up getting a potential refund of $98.