I've got mixed feelings about what you're saying.

Western Mountaineering & similar aren't trying to gouge people with high prices. However, WM warns that my particular model, the Highlite, must be treated with extra care in comparison with most other bags, due to especially lightweight construction.

Overkill. Some might feel the Highlite is an example. It's a personal judgment. On a recent camping trip, I used a 1/2-size fleece blanket in lieu of any sleeping bag at all. It worked just fine.

When I said here a while back that I used a $20 Kmart puptent for mucho, mucho months in the field with complete satisfaction, people said I was wrong, lying even, that I couldn't possibly be correct.

Sorry, but that's nuts!!!

Call me a quack, but I've got a very, very old, ($35 cheapy) doddering summer-weight duck down bag that will soon enough, be headed permanently south. Generally, the WM is warmer and lighter, and I reserve it for those occassions when these features become a particular advantage.