I think the crux is you consider "VPN use case is either to securely leave a network (hotel Wi-Fi, airport wifi)" a core VPN use case when the author considers that a proxy use case.
I side with the author on this one, a virtual private network is meant to mean multiple private devices on a single network segment virtualized over some transport. Using it as the place you connect to to shove your internet traffic through a relay definitely fits the secure proxy use case/definition way better.
I side with the author on this one, a virtual private network is meant to mean multiple private devices on a single network segment virtualized over some transport. Using it as the place you connect to to shove your internet traffic through a relay definitely fits the secure proxy use case/definition way better.