But the reasons you're giving for saying "but I'd much rather never have a modal ever" are down to bad design decisions. In that sense any UI pattern could caus

But the reasons you're giving for saying "but I'd much rather never have a modal ever" are down to bad design decisions. In that sense any UI pattern could cause you the same reaction if used badly. I don't think you can write of modals simply because you don't like how they are used in some cases. For example, how do you feel about Pinterest using modals to expand on content?