Paint Antiques - Yes or No?

How do you feel about antiques?  Are you quick to paint them and never think twice or are you like me and picture them painted, but can never go through with it?  I once heard Design Star Emily Henderson say that she doesn't paint anything older than 20 years.  For me, it depends on whether it is a "nice" piece or not.  I actually have a couple of pieces that would be amazing painted, but call me chicken.  One solution that I can live with is painting or wallpapering the interior.  This way you preserve the original piece, but you give it a fresh new look allowing the contents of the shelves to stand out a little more.  Here are some examples.

House Beautiful

 Southern Living via Green Street

Life in the Fun Lane

House Beautiful

Lonny

 Southern Accents

I suppose if you still can't bring yourself to do this, you could have a piece of plywood or maybe luan cut to fit and paint or wallpaper it leaving your antique untouched.  What do you think?  Would you paint an antique?