I'll grant you that most sales professions have a low barrier to entry, as they're commission-based (no harm in throwing as many rookies at the wall as possible and seeing who sticks). Therefore, everyone on the receiving end has been disappointed, frustrated, or angered by a salesperson at some point.
On the flipside, this profession is the most pure form of Survival of the Fittest. The commission-based compensation structure actually forces people to either perform or starve (as opposed to other careers, where mediocrity is generally rewarded with salary and raises). Ultimately, the vast majority of salespeople rarely last more than a couple of years.
That leaves you with higher performers, who clearly have essential skills to achieve success; it might not entail a technical understanding of data structures and design patterns, but they are skills that are essential to keeping the machine of our economy running.
Not to toot my own horn, but just an example: I earned a degree in Accounting/Finance from a top 10 university and decided to drop out of an Ivy League MBA to pursue commission-based sales. To me, it's the most exhilerating, unpredictable, and (financially and emotionally) rewarding career. There's nothing more enjoyable than listening to my software engineering candidates from the very first contact to the acceptance of an offer. A career is an essential part of an individual's livelihood and it's incredibly satisfying to be a catalyst for positive change in one's life.
All it takes is one positive experience, then hopefully you'll have a change of heart!