Okay, nobody is on a crusade against Peter Jackson here. We're not all plugged into every aspect of the Hobbit's production.

And speaking as someone with a little costuming experience, if the masks were causing the actors breathing difficulties and safety issues, then they were poorly designed. I'll bet this didn't happen on the LOTR films.

And if you don't understand why some of us have issues with CGI that does convince the eye it's a living breathing creature, you've missed one reason this site even exists.