>> If you need something done in a real hurry, then having somebody who can
>> hit the ground running can be very important.
>
> That's actually the case not just when you need something done in a real
> hurry.
>
> Training employees is expensive.  If you hire someone who has exactly
> what you're looking for, it saves you money.

Well, sure.

But remember, we're not talking about training somebody to be an expert 
carpenter when they've never sawn a block of wood in their life. We're 
talking about taking somebody who's an expert programmer and giving them 
two to three weeks to learn a new programming language. If you're going 
to employ somebody for 5+ years, then giving them a week or two to learn 
a necessary skill is peanuts.

I guess part of it is that the majority of applications apparently lie 
to a quite shocking degree. (Exhibit A: Fizz Buzz exists.) Hiring 
somebody who can *prove* that they already wrote something in C# (or 
whatever) is the safest way to get rid of the utter time wasters. But it 
seems a pity to also get rid of some really great people...

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