The plane is unsafe, according to the FAA. It is also uneconomical to operate. I'm not sure what Boeing is balking at, it is a relatively small cost to engineer a fix and come up with a cost for it, at which point the few remaining operators will scrap the already uneconomical plane. I would note that the chances of an electrical fault with old wiring that has possibly been exposed to fuel is rather more likely than in a newer aircraft. It may feel like a pointless exercise, but so was estimate that the insurance company had an auto rebuilder generate for my wrecked car, to prove that it was a total loss.
There are millions of tons of products that have been scrapped because they can't meet modern safety requirements and that is a good thing. The world evolves.
I'm not sure why there is a thumbs down above, apologies for a technical error.