[unspun]

I confess I didn't wade through this whole piece tonight, any more than I'd want to wade through the Sylmarillion tonight.

As passionate a proponent of popular sovereignty as I am, I'm not too concerned with people wanting to become vassals after seeing the Two Towers.

(I'm more concerned tonight that our Republican-led Senate is behaving as if it were a House of Lords, instead of public servants who are responsible to elect the Majority Leader who would best maintain the People's sacred trust.)

Also, I recall who winds up being the greatest hero in this story. Don't read below, if you don't want to know who that is...

(the gardener)

Also, frankly, I appreciate J.R.R.T's interest in conservation (or "ecology," for those born after the hippy days).

[Kaiwen]

Agreed. I think that the main flaw in his argument is Tolkien's chioce of heroes. While all the other memmbers of the Fellowship, and most of the other characters in the novels, are nobility, the most important are still the Hobbits. I find that very anti-Romantic, and rather Christian.

That said, as an American I find both Tolkien's, and much of the rest of the world's, idea of a past golden age rather difficult to grasp.