oh there is a long list of why they are still around.
ease of walking in and buying them. most are used for hunting and a slow and i mean slow up trend in dedicated competition and non competition target shooting over all. yea competition shooting is becoming popular but hunting rigs still out weigh target shooting and competition shooting IMHO. least that's what i'm see in my part of the woods.
me, i went with a tikka just because a bolt stop would be the difference between "long" and "short" action without have dedicated rifles for each.
not everyone cares about single hole groups at 500 yards and beyond, not everyone cares about loading every cartridge long, not everyone cares about velocity.
just like-
not everyone will choose a 270win for a 1000-1200 yard rifle, but i did
not everyone will hang a 30" barrel off it to squeeze out as much velocity as possible without having a a crane arm to carry around. but i did.
not everyone is worried about lugging around a rifle in the thick woods of western NC. i'm not, got other tools for that lol
not everyone will go against the grain when doing something, but i do.
but for the ones that do, they'll build a rifle to fit their needs and requirements.
that's what i'm doing.
short actions have their place, just like everything else does.