No, not rude or harsh at all.
I don't pay to go to class (can't make it there due to work) but I do pay for online membership.
I see SW as a healthy eating plan, and intend to do it for the rest of my life. On reflection I do eat syns (low fat dressing on salad, Alpen Light bars,) just very few of them. I don't seem to want or need them. My plan has always been that when I get to my target then I'll start encouraging myself to use more syns - cheese, occassional bread. In the meantime if I need to 'kick start' weight loss for any reason then I'll use exercise. Up until now I've lost 2.5 stone without doing any extra exercise (I'm fairly active anyhow as I walk part way to work etc) but I used to never get the tube (I live in London) and do a 45 minute walk across London every morning, I can go back to this.
As you say, if something works for someone then keep going with it. This works for me. I've had bad weeks - I went to Italy for a week, deliberately ate what I wanted and put on 6lb, I lost it in the two weeks after I got back by putting extra effort in.
I think that the best thing about SW is the flexibility, and that we can all make it fit in with our lives and our preferences.