They're supposed to be a long term goal in terms of gameplay, not how much green you throw at them. The only thing the AST does is make them expensive.. honestly there are enough gold sinks in the game and strikes needed a substantial reward to get people actually playing them so IMHO it's a win-win.
It won't break the ATS economy because if you think the average player is getting their strike CM clears each week, you seriously overestimate them ;)