Same reason a 20oz bottle of water is $1.30. People are willing to pay for it.

As for the main question: I shoot pratically all brands/types of powder. I like them all for various applications. If I were only shooting scoped inlines with sabots, yes BH would be my #1 choice. Cleanup or swabbing doesn't bother me, I just prefer the consistency/accuracy from shot to shot that I can't seem to get with other powders (personally).

As far as price, we are being taken for a ride by the company that produces it. They more or less have us by the short hairs.

As far as the product, I love it. Not because it simulates a smokeless powder. But becasue it gives me the opportunity to reach out a lot further for that long ML shot! I use it exclusively in my Knight Vision and the performance is great!

As far as my shooting pleasure, I use the real deal: BLACK POWDER!!! It smells great and makes a lot of smoke!!!

But the price is what makes it so controversial. If we didn't have this to talk about, then what else? ;)

I guess I value my time because the amount of time I can spend shooting is limited, I have to agree its overprice, it is easy to get a break down on the components and compare. They are making the same kind of profit the oil refineries are.
But to me its worth it I can only spend 4 hours a week shooting most of the time and it is worth it to me to make the most of my shooting time; and then accuracy comes into it to no other powder has given me any 1/2 inch groups and the difference in the amount of fliers for unknown reasons is enough to make me pay the price by it self; and last but not least is the velocity I get with 140 gr at the same pressure 115 gr of 777 gives me while still maintaining that accuracy.
My wishes are that the Black Mag 3 or 4 which ever it was some one sent me a can of goes into production. It is noticeably heavier than Blackhorn but by volume produces the same velocity is very clean and ignites with a #11 cap very consistently. I use most of it in my traditional so I can not say much about what it would do in inlines but my preliminary testing shows it to be wonderful in traditional and the equal of Blackhorn in inlines. And while I have no idea what the price would be I would probably get a case for starters.