AboutCaleb Expertise I'm happy to help you with suggesting bands to listen to, or resolving questions about the history of punk. I end up telling most people to listen to the Velvet Underground - definitely check them out of you haven't yet.
Answer A simple yet interesting question. Much the same as why people like punk - it's simple and interesting.
Not all punk is simple of course - Refused's album "The Shape Of Punk To Come" for example. Of course, that's not really punk in the purest sense, but more post-hardcore.
I can't really answer your question, because punk means so many different things to so many different people, who all like it for different reasons.
But back in the 70s, the appeal of punk was that it was bringing back the rebellious spirit of rock'n'roll with its loud, fast, heavy, political, simple, catchy pop songs... people were sick of pretentious, "mature", complicated, boring, elitist progressive rock.
Not all of the first wave of punk bands fit the above criteria (The Ramones weren't political, the Clash weren't heavy, the Sex Pistols weren't fast). But punk has always been full of contradictions.
If you're talking about modern so-called "punk" rock... i dunno, i guess they like it cos the songs are catchy and they like the image.