Bin Laden's New Look

By Terry Gatewood

With the release of the new video by Al-Qaeda, I've heard a lot of people both in and out of the intelligence community muse on just what the message is. The message isn't always what is said, but what is seen.

Besides all the praise for the martyrs and the babble on taxes and such, Bin-Laden calls for Americans to convert to Islam. Granted, this is a constant diatribe of Muslim extremists, but this call for conversion is, in my view, a little bit different and a lot more serious.

Muslims are required to invite any non-believers to convert to Islam. But more than that, there are protocols in place for a call to Jihad, or Holy War. Before any Muslim commits to Jihad, they must, according to the prophet Mohammed, invite the enemy to convert one last time, or go to hell.

Muslims are not allowed to dye their hair or beards under any circumstances unless...They are preparing for combat! Muslims can dye their hair and beards when preparing to go into combat because it is okay to show the enemy that they are surprisingly young. This is meant to put fear into the enemy's hearts.

Now, let's put two and two together. A call to conversion plus the dying of Bin-Laden's beard equals...Possible signal for another attack?

I am watching the internet for recent video posts to see if other higher-ups in Al-Qaeda are dying their beards. With today being the anniversary of 9/11, I'm a little on edge, as you should be also.