If the server is up, even if you use 0% CPU, you're getting charged.
Per-use is a lot cheaper for people that spin up servers to meet demand and kill them once things slow down.
"If My Linode is Powered Off, Will I Be Billed? If your Linode is powered off, but is still added as a service on your account, you will still be billed for it. This is because Linode maintains your saved data and reserves your ability to use other resources like RAM, transfer, etc. even when your Linode is powered off. You will be billed for any other active Linode service, such as Longview Pro or an extra IP, as well."
[0] https://www.linode.com/docs/platform/billing-and-payments
Seriously, people do not understand leasing and renting.
All their marketing during the change was how it was cheaper. When it clearly was over double the price. And your argument is "it is cheaper if you are not using". So good luck going to a hotel and not booking any room so it can be cheaper.
It's only cheaper for companies that have lots and lots of servers, but most of them aren't provisioned most of the time.
They introduced per-hour billing recently, that's the only fundamental change to their billing, and that was something you had to go out of your way to opt into if you wanted it for an existing account.
If you provisioned a $20/mo. machine then yes you will pay $240 per year for it. This is how math works.