Truth. I use Southwest unless I have no other choice (the only times have been when I specifically needed a red-eye and when I took a Thanksgiving flight at the last minute). Aside from the price, it's also just less irritating: not having TVs showing ads on the back of every seat is a big plus, and I don't have to plan around not bringing checked luggage.
I used to use Southwest a lot until I started discovering the joys of having status on an old-school carrier. If you fly less than 25,000 miles a year then Southwest is great, but if you fly more (and especially if you get up to 50 or 100K miles) then the perks of United (or similar) become irresistible.
I don't have status with anyone, but I'm usually broke. My impression is that having status with a carrier gets you perks, it doesn't so much make the experience as cheap as Southwest (and if you're strictly flying domestically, you're talking a 6-hour flight, max. That's really not that bad).
