Big Steam Engine Blues

I am tickled by the big debate below ,as well as some interesting opinions .Being impossibly opinionated myself ,I respectfully offer my two centavos . I think fans should support such endeavors like the U.P.Steam/Heritage Program with open wallets and pursed lips .If the UP is willing to manage the awesome liability of touring steam engines system wide , it is a generous offering to railfans and the public . It is the last of its kind ,and realistically ,can end any time .
As Steele Man pointed out ,the UP understandably has no obligation to increase its liability by running steam engines they do not maintain or inspect in-house . Steele also pointed out that groups that restore mainline steam locomotives might want to inquire locally about whether or not they will be allowed to operate their engines . A number of big-engine restorations have run into the problem of no willing hosts for several decades now . In some cases ,like #3751 ,problems arose regarding basic storage . So my spin is leave such restorations to the willing sponsors themselves,like the UP . Down the road some mainlines will be sold off ,and the possibilities of mainline steam specials may crop up .One candidate is the SP's Coast line .The State of California and the SP and its successor have been negotiating this big sale for years on an on-and-off basis .
I have maintained that smaller-engine restoration is far more practical ,because it is cheaper to fix ,easier to do , easier to store and there are more opportunities for finding a railroad to operate on ,even locally.I am a big proponent of the "touring locomotive" philosophy that has been advanced by Dan Markoff . Look how well received the "Eureka"is in Durango every year .This can happen for standard gauge engines as well , even mid-sized engines like SP #2472 . The Sierra and the Grand Canyon come to mind . We all need to appreciate the many steam operations ,big and small that still exist ,and we should support them,close and far away , with our precious greenbacks .