[sf-lug] Yes, Mailman stores and sends the passwords in the clear: Re: Anyone here had any contact with Linu xChix.org?

[Rick Moen]

[off-topic Tolkieniana]

Quoting Bobbie Sellers (bliss-sf4ever at dslextreme.com):

> The Balrog had been hiding at the root of the mountain since he
> hid from the Gods at Morgoth's final overthrow and expulsion from the
> Universe.

You are a First Age scholar, Bobbie!

Yep, that was the War of Wrath, that among other things laid ruin to
most of the continent (which outcome convinced the Powers that further
direct intervention was a bad idea).  The particular fire-spirit
(balrog, actually in origin a Maia like Gandalf) fled said battle and
hid below one of the mountains (Barazinbar aka Redhorn aka Caradhras)
for five thousand years until well into the Third Age when the dwarves
delved into its lair seeking mithril and woke it, whereupon it killed
many dwarves including Durin VI and rendered the dwarves' great dwelling
Khazad-dûm no longer inhabitable.

The balrog now had Khazad-dûm to itself for about 500 years until
Gandalf and the hobbits, etc., dropped by.  Cue confrontation at the
bridge, etc.  Exit balrog.

Thus indirectly (via D&D gamer culture, I guess) giving fandom one of
its more famous filk songs, by the way (sung to the tune of 'Waltzing
Mathilda'):  http://www.newsfrombree.co.uk/balrog.htm

> Now the Dwarfs had probably never seen a Balrog when they decided to
> delve to the roots of the mountain, and the Dwarfs with the Quest
> likely had no idea why the mountain had been abandoned to the Orcs. 

Eh, they had _some_ idea, because Durin's son Náin had a second go at
the balrog, failed and got likewise killed, _his_ son Thráin took the
survivors on their trek to the Lonely Mountain -- and, according to the
account in LotR, the fleeing dwarves told the elves in Lothlorien of the
horrible thing that had killed many of them including two of their
kings, and the latter weren't certian what it was, and so called it the
Nameless Terror.

Gimli, the dwarf in the Fellowship, was also of the royal line and knew
all of this history, and about the extreme danger of Durin's Bane.  
So, they might not have known it was specifically a balrog, but they
knew it was Not to Be Messed With.