Well, how thoroughly depressing. It is much as I feared though. I am now planning on travelling with Delta, with stops in JFK on the outward journey, and Atlanta (eek) on the return.
I have actually had pretty good experiences with Delta. And they once upgraded me to business from the cheapest economy ticket known to man, so they have a small place in my heart.
It's such a shame that it's a case of picking between a bad bunch, but then when you look out how people like my employer buy flights these days (i.e. searching for the absolute dirt cheapest fares they can find), it's no wonder things have gone the way they've gone. If people aren't willing to pay for quality then levels will drop, I guess it's pretty simple.