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Well, I think all of these could apply, at least in my opinion. Let me give you a few examples of things that I would consider at least somewhat ridiculous.
1. Developing Silver Laced Rocks. Rocks have lots of varieties and Wyandottes already have laid claim to the American class' best Silver Laced. Wanting to see an SC Wyandotte with a long, flat back accepted into the SOP seems like a silly idea to me.
2. Partridge (blue partridge, insert random color here) Brahmas, Orpingtons, etc. Again we have an established breed with history, heritage and a very defined style and type. It seems almost sacrilegious to me to add new patterns to these breeds. I would not say the same to breeds like Wyandottes that already have so many colors as part of their heritage. It would be almost like Partridge Leghorns or Silver Laced La Fleche... Are you joking? Maybe Mottled Rhode Island Reds
Okay, I'm being stupid, but I think I make my point.
3. Creating any variety that looks like a cross bred. Basically, I love the fact that well-bred chickens have some of the most beautifully defined patterns in all of the animal kingdom. Where in the wild can you find perfect lacing or penciling? Again, if you're going to undertake the project, don't quit before it looks good! Obviously, as Dak wrote, everyone is going to do whatever he/she wants with his/her money. I just wish people would think about it and make a long-term contribution instead of a short-term whatever.
As I was thinking about this a little, I actually think that the part I like the least is when people cross chickens as if it were just a game. Maybe just an extension of Farmville or some XBox game in real life. I have no problem with dedicated people working with varieties in a dedicated way. I encourage Bo and Dak to work on LF Mottled Cochins. Especially since I know that some show-stomping, kick butt Cochins are going to be the result. Maybe that's it, too. I'm sick of looking at chickens that are so mediocre, almost degrading to the excellence seen in excellent breeding programs throughout the country. And I want to see the absolute beauty of patterns perfected to that level as well.
Again, my purpose is not, has never been, and never will be to tell anyone what to do, how to do it, or why he/she is completely stupid and wrong for doing what he/she is doing. I only want to promote discussion and thought. This is difficult to do if I don't present my own opinions as well.
If you work on a new variety and it never takes off, when you quit, your project is over, unless you find someone interested in your "project birds" who has the same vision that you did. If you improve an existing variety, when you decide you can't do it anymore, it's much more likely that your birds become something that lives on beyond you. Your birds, if you raise enough and good-enough, might become a new strain that lives for a long, long time and contributes to the breed as a whole.
