Thanks for your responses. I know it's hard when privileges are taken away from travelers. I was so use to using my miles to upgrade, when they disallowed it that really upset me. As I stated, I don't plan to use my miles for free tickets, so I'm not sure how useful they are to me now.
There's not much I can do since my company requires tickets purchased 2 weeks in advanced (so I would no doubt always get the value fare). I also don't travel enough to get Gold status, so I'm screwed there.
I suppose I will still continue to fly AS since I can use my lowly elite status to get through the checkpoints quicker in Seattle and Portland. If something better comes up, I'll probably switch.