1) and 2) are certainly true. The difference in motivation decay is huge.
As for 3), Chansey is worse than Blissey but better than anything else. The total time to knock out a Blissey is about 3 minutes including loading screens, for Chansey it's 25-30s less. Chansey deals significantly less damage to the attacker as well.
It's about your preference and playstyle. If you're usually the first to take down a gym, Blisseys are preferable. For slotting into gyms that are already your color, a good Chansey is certainly valuable.