[mVChr]

I have been a front-end engineer for over a decade, and if I were hiring for a position a decade ago I would understand and agree with your points. However, with the breadth and depth of skills required for great front-end engineering today, I would feel very uncomfortable hiring someone who only had the arcane skills required to "get the job done" on the front-end. If hiring for a smaller company, I would be concerned about this person's ability to contribute to more than just the tasks in their silo. If hiring for a larger company, I would be concerned about this person's potential for future growth. Also, it's usually apparent from projects or employment history that someone can do what's required on the surface for front-end work, so why would I waste interview time going over details and minutiae in that area? I'd rather take the opportunity to find out if they're a solid engineer as well.