Don't forget that by buying an AP, you are getting into the parks at a discounted rate or even free if you go enough during the year. That's a huge savings! I am an AP holder and I do understand the frustration, but seriously, I bought the AP so I didn't have to buy the tickets again. I've already made the savings just by going more than once. If I get a discount on top of that, it's just icing on the cake. But for those of you who are finding it hard to accept, I totally get it. I'll still be hoping for something more to come our way...
I agree with your philosophy, and I too only have an AP for the admission value. I think the most angry people are those who buy the AP's solely for the discount, which they shouldn't do in the first place. But I think a couple of other things are at work here.
Over the years, we have gone from a situation where the AP discount was one of just a handful of discounts offered pretty much all at the same time (which made the AP holders feel their loyalty was appreciated) to a situation where the AP discounts are offered last and are generally substandard compared to the many, many other discounts offered (which leaves the AP holders feeling like they aren't appreciated for their loyalty at all). Will this cause some people to not buy an AP? Maybe. Maybe that's what Disney prefers because they want us to have to buy the packages with the tickets and dining plan.
I don't see a big difference in the timing of the AP discount releases, even though there are often complaints about the release dates. Having lived in Florida for many, many years, the Resident and AP discounts generally were announced 3-4 months out, so you had to have some flexibility - the ability to plan more last minute than the average traveler. I can remember calling daily through late June and early July to find out if the AP discounts for September had come out yet. Yes, this can be difficult, and so many people started booking at rack rate and then having Disney apply the discount to their reservation later, so they could go ahead and book airfare, etc.
Disney has caught on to this, so now, if a resort is at a certain occupancy level, the discounts are reduced or non-existent. I think one reason this latest round of AP discounts doesn't list a specific percentage is that they can fine tune it to try to direct people to the resorts they want to fill. If people aren't responding to 25% off at a specific resort, they can quietly increase the discount to 30% and see if people bite. So we may see posts from people later saying they saved more or less than the people posting today - based on whether the occupancy changes. This is just a continuation of what they started a year or so ago, when they started listing a few resorts at different percentage levels than their peers, but less transparent.
It's disappointing to not get the discounts you hoped for. I know my bounceback reservations are much better than the AP discounts. I've learned that if I see a rate I can afford at a resort I like, to book it right then, whether it's a GP, or Florida Resident, or
AAA, or AP, or bounceback. IF somewhere along the line I can save a few dollars with a different discount code, that's great. But so long as I book a resort I like at a price I can afford, then I'm happy. I will not book at rack rate, period. I've never received a PIN, and doubt I ever will (I think I live too close, but that's just a theory). Of course, working on my 2012 budget, I'm not penciling in as many weeks at WDW, because I'm anticipating the discounts will continue to diminish. There are other places I can go for less money and have a nice vacation - Florida is full of them!
I hope no one has to cancel their vacation to WDW because of room rates, but I totally understand if they do. I understand if they go off property, or to another resort.
Disney vacations aren't cheap (no matter what they say in the commercials) and sometimes you have to make sacrifices to make it work. My sacrifice will be fewer trips.
We go every September and I was sad to see that there are no AP discounts this year. I'd gladly pay for the dining plan and get a discount on a room. We usually stay deluxe with our discount and then pay for dining. 
Add in the not-so-hot AP rates..I've felt for years that Disney overpriced, knowing they could offer a "discount" and, human psychology being what it, people would be GRATEFUL to open their wallets wide b/c they were getting a *fabulous deal*....now they are even cutting back on this game. I've already told DH that this will likely be our last trip....at least for a good long while. God bless those who are willing to pay the going rate, accept the decline in choices and service, etc. I think that my vacation should not require this much work and angst to make it fit the budget [or feel like I got good value for my money], to plan more than 6 months ahead to be able to do what we want, etc. Love Disney, but I'm done for a while.
