What a useless reply. Your parent is IMO accurate. The consumer is not actually valuing price above everything else; the consumer does not have all the information on how comfortable this or that flight is, and we all know markets only work optimally when the buyer has all the information.
Basically the market for airline flights is not a well functioning transparent market, so you cannot say "aha, the consumer preference is obviously the cheapest ticket at all costs".
Personally I would happily pay a little more for more legroom, but have found no good reliable way to find those tickets.
I might be in the minority, but I usually take a look at Seat Guru or read one or two trip reports or flight reviews before buying an transatlantic or transcontinental airline ticket, just as I would with any other $500+ purchase.
