Do Balrogs Have Wings?

[Fordim Hedgethistle]

I've cited this argument so many times now that I can't even remember where Mister Underhill first made it on the Downs, but I can see I need to cite it again...

When the Fellowship is paddling down the Anduin and a Nazgul FLIES OVERHEAD (they are all LOOKING UP at something that BLOTS OUT THE STARS so it obviously has working wings), Gimli (who was there at the chasm and saw the balrog) says that it reminds him of the balrog.

At this point, nobody says anything like, "Uhhhh.....Gimli.....the balrog we saw didn't have wings.....what are you, stupid or something?"

It seems impossible to thing anything other than balrogs have wings and that they work after reading that section. Anyone who wants to disprove this is going to have to explain to me why

a) Gimli (who saw the balrog) thinks that something flying in the air reminds him of a balrog

AND

b) why nobody in the Fellowship (who also saw the balrog) doesn't contradict his sentiment or feel the need to correct him.

And, once more, because I never get tired of pointing this out: sometimes, people say that something looks LIKE something because it is that something.

"Hey!" said the man on the traintracks in the dead of night, "that light which is coming toward me rapidly along the tracks looks a lot LIKE an approaching train. Thank goodness, it only looks LIKE a train, and is not totally visible and entirely apprehensible AS a train as it would be in the day, for now I have nothing to worry about. Something that merely looks LIKE a train as it hurtles toward me on the traintracks clearly presents no danger to me. If the light were approaching me AS a train I should be worried and step off the tracks but as things are" *splat*