I'm really not surprised. You seem to be confusing the appearance of a thing with the function of a thing.
Seriously. There's more to life than appearances, far more to any object than its style ... yet in this discussion, you have focused only on style ... for a designer, I suppose "style" is all. For most of the rest of us, it's not the top of the priority list ... and newness of style even farther down the list. When something has to last a long time, for most folks newness of style gives way to style that will still appeal in several years, or even a couple of decades. Today's "hottest trend" is tomorrow's "dated look" ... but colonial ... or older ... that's always good.
What I don’t understand is the emotional repulsion of modern design for many people,
Again, I'm not surprised. But if you in fact are a designer, you would do well to try. Why are you surprised that folks who like "classical" music, "classical" painting, "classical" sculpture ... also like "classical" houses?
who cannot articulate their feelings beyond generalities that the architecture is “cold” or “ugly”.
When they're spending their own money, that's all they need to do. "It's ugly, I ain't buying it. End of discussion." Frankly, I find that modernist designers and artists can't articulate the reasons they like that which they produce. They're very good a spilling verbiage on the topic ... but there's very little substance in said verbiage.
If you go back and look at the subject of the article, it is about beauty, not utility, though admittedly the two are sometimes intertwined. However, the old dictum that “form follows function” is often just a canard today. One look at plastic plantation shutters, which even if they actually were hinged, could not cover the windows they are designed to accent, shows that such matters of utility have long since been abandoned. I thought the purpose of this website was to discuss the subject at hand? Have I erred by sticking to the subject?
Now, no one, least of all me, is surprised that fads are not universally adopted. But trends are. When I was a young child, hats for men were almost universally worn by American men. Today, the only type of male hats still worn are baseball caps. When was the last time you wore a fedora? Again, it can clearly be demonstrated by even a cursory look at modern society that most people DO adopt new trends and fashions, a few old curmudgeons not withstanding.
Again, in your comments about music, you misunderstand me. I am NOT surprised that some folks like classical music. My oldest bother prefers the big band sound. Nothing wrong with that. The fact remains that some people like both more traditional styles as well as modern music. Even more like current musical artists best, as shown by music sales, concert attendance, and popular culture generally.
As for how you or anyone else wants to spend their money, that’s up to the individual. I support their right to do so. My only remarks, to which you have not added anything of substance to the question, is why buildings, particularly domiciles, are so out of sync with the rest of their buying habits.