Go figure - as soon as I write up a rant on my XBox 360 repair experience, I check my repair status online and find this new information:

Device: Xbox360 Hardware
Serial Number: XXXXXXXXXXXX
Warranty Status: In Warranty
Repair Status: Device Shipped to Customer

The new "Device Shipped to Customer" text is encouraging.  How could this be encouraging after all the lies, deceit, struggle, agony, and pain?  Well, I'm not sure, except I was able to find a new tracking number on a linked page from where the above information was located on their service site.  It's probably accurate information.  Probably.