: : : Gandalf

:
: For a very long time, it seemed impossible to engineers that dragonflies were able to fly. According to everything they knew about aerodynamics, the wings of a dragonfly were simply too small to support the mass of its body. However, their lack of understanding did not change the simple fact that a dragonfly is in fact able to fly. Similarly, if you break down reaction speeds and speed of neural transmissions, it seems physically impossible to hit a major league fastball. This did not stop MacGwire from hitting 70 home runs. Since we know that the Three Rings did stop working, complaining that it doesn't make sense is a waste of time. It makes more sense to try to find the reason behind observed events.

LOL That's a nothing answer, if we've ever heard one.
I'm afraid, my learned colleague (I love sayin that!) that you cannot take everything that Tolkien says for Gospel.
Okai, that may make little sense, but think about it. He is highly fallible, being merely mortal. I can point out several inconsistancies in Middle-Earth.
The argument here, is whether it's feasible or not, logically, for certain events to have occured.
I am merely pointing out that it seems to go against logic for things to have panned out the way they did, maybe Tolkien didn't think it through properly... Then again, that's one good reason why his works are so great.
So you can't just argue that "That's the way it is, get over it" We have to look at whether this REALLY IS an inconsistency, or not.

Gandalf