ali said it like no one else I've seen in her journal: http://www.furaffinity.net/journal/6444239/

But to reiterate and dare to publicly post my opinion, I HATE closed species'. Especially when it's just two different normal animals put together...Or like a fluffier version of something. Or a dog with hooves or something. Just because you thought of it first (or think you did) doesn't mean that you have rights to it.

And it's ridiculous how white knights attack people due to similarities. I, myself, have been the victim of crazy white knights before, and the whole thing is just incredibly ridiculous.

Some people really do put a lot of work into their designs, but I don't think that's ever a reason to "close" a species. Like if you make it open and still put out your own designs and people pay a million dollars for them, then good for you! But don't threaten people with defamation just because you can't handle someone else's character looking like yours. Not everyone has $400 on hand to buy an eeray, for example.

So don't force people into a "who has more money" position for characters they could design themselves. Creating isn't a war, it's supposed to be a community effort. Things are always based on other things; there is no originality in the world any more. So suck up and deal with it. If I see a thing I like, I'm going to interpret it how I will and make something of it. It's called inspiration. Look it up.