Your dislike doesn't seem irrational to me. Mine is born from not wanting to put my fingers in the path of the blade when unlocking it to fold.

I was a die-hard lockback fan for folding knives, and got rid of any liner locks that came my way. Now the only folding knives that I actually use have Benchmade Axis locks or Spyderco's ball-bearing lock.

While all folding knives are a compromise compared to a fixed blade, I'm a lot more likely to have a folding knife with me.