Why Has Osama Dyed His Beard?

[Me.]

We're told that recent pictures show a dark beard rather than the grey it used to be. Does that sound like him? Worldly and interested in his looks? Did he go insane watching In-style while holed up in the mountains of Pakistan? Is a mullet next? Is it really Osama jr. we'll be seeing? Or are we being handed another pig in a poke?

[Hydra]

1. I just read that part

and damned if I don't feel like alice down the rabbit hole.

Where the f*** is this place and where did they put my world????

[blogslut]

2. He went to Lou Dobb's hairdresser

;)

[Gregorian]

13. OMG they're communicating via hair signals.

:)

[blogslut]

14. See the chart

It's all there, in plain sight. ;)

http://www.cachebeauty.com/wholsale/roux_rinse.htm

[Gregorian]

17. It's color coded! Now hear this- CODE TEMPTING TAFFY

It's a dirty blonde over New York.

[blogslut]

19. Just lay off the Ultra White Minx!

That's reserved for Mr. Cheney. ;)

[musette_sf]

23. does he... or doesn't he?

only his SCAREdresser knows for sure...

(personally my money is on "Pretty Beaver" being the couleur de jour....)

[Liberal In Texas]

24. They have a color called "PRETTY BEAVER"? #14

:crazy:

[musette_sf]

25. if not satisfied with results of patch test

try "Mahogany Merkin" instead :-)

[BrklynLiberal]

3. Wonder how many people will even notice that inconsistency.

I will be shocked if any of the MSM people showing and discussing the video will mention the beard.

One can never lose by underestimating the intelligence of the American public.
How very, very sad.

[Virginia Dare]

8. They actually did on ABC tonight..

very, very strange piece they ran.

[Megahurtz]

84. I Heard Wolfie

mention it on CNN.

[Cameron27]

4. It's very strange, that's for sure.

[The Straight Story]

5. He wants to try out for American Idol and to further his acting career

:)

[rodeodance]

6. why did Reagan dye his hair?

[Benhurst]

16. He didn't. It was naturally orange.

:rofl:

[Virginia Dare]

7. Been using the Grecian Formula..

it's all the rage in the caves of Pakistan you know..

[Benhurst]

18. George W. Bush warned us about those Grecians.

[Virginia Dare]

31. I thought that was the French?...n/t

[Ian David]

9. To impress Whitney Houston

Obsessed bin Laden wanted to kill Whitney Houston's husband
Last updated at 15:41pm on 22nd August 2006


Sorry, no play for mister gray!

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/showbiz/showbiznews.html?in_article_id=401627&in_page_id=1773

Besides, khaki is an "autumn" collor, and Osama Bin Forgotten is obviously more of a summer.

[tom_paine]

69. Holy crap! This new Bushie Ringer (is Bin Laden in Crawford sipping mai-tais?)

looks REALLY unlike Bin Laden. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/photo.cms?msid=2346181

Although, to be truthful, Fat Osama was a mess too, so let's just say they aren't getting any better.

Oh, and it WAS printed in the press...IN INDIA (how many times since Old America fell have I said THAT about some of the many topics forbidden to be reported to more than 10,000 people by the Bush lie Machine Sub-media and the MSM that acts as their unquestioning trumpet).

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/The_United_States/Osama_Bin_Laden_is_dyed_and_alive/articleshow/2346119.cms

[Me.]

83. Maybe There Has Been Face Work

For cosmetic reasons only, don't ya know

[TornadoTN]

74. HAHAHA! That's priceless!

Wow, that really is a weird article.

Thank goodness Whitney has this guy around:

[Gregorian]

10. Oops.

:)

[malaise]

11. Because

dead men dye their hair.

[Generator]

91. Ding ding we have a winner

Oh yes, this deserves a Duzy.

[HysteryDiagnosis]

12. Why have hundreds of thousands of

Iraqi citizens dyed, ask GWB.

[BrklynLiberal]

26. Love the suggestion for use of duct tape.....

:applause: :applause: :applause: :rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[BrklynLiberal]

27. self delete posted in wrong place

[HysteryDiagnosis]

32. Wish it was my idea, but if you check the properties on the

photo, you will see that someone's bandwidth just took a small hit but I would imagine they approve of the exposure of the image. I hope they approve. Here is another I found that just cracked me up.

[BrklynLiberal]

40. Hope it is not too late.

[HiFructosePronSyrup]

15. Is there something in fundamentalist Islam against beard dyeing?

Is it an impossibility that he did dye his beard? People don't really believe he lives in a cave, do they?

[H2O Man]

20. Henna paste

(with lemon) is commonly used by Muslim men in the Middle East to dye their beards when they begin to turn grey.

[Habibi]

55. Really? Interesting!

Is it a vanity thing, a social thing, or what?

On edit: I see from your post below that it's both.

[merh]

80. I found this site which provides answers to various questions regarding Islam

QUERIES ON ISLAM

Nevertheless, the use of black dye is specifically permitted during time of war, with the possibility of demoralizing the enemy when they see all Muslim soldiers looking ‘young’.

Moreover,dyeing the hair when there is no grey hair, though not forbidden, is not regarded as following the Prophet’s example, since it does not serve the same shar’i interests as achieved by dyeing grey hair.

One must make sure that hair colouring should not be done as an imitation of immodest or immoral people, whom some people may mistakenly regard as examples to follow. This is prohibited because the Prophet (pbuh) said: “Whoever imitates any people is one of them.” .

http://www.irf.net/irf/dtp/dawah_tech/ques47.htm

and this one

In his well-known book, The Lawful and The Prohibited in Islam, Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi states the Islamic rulings pertaining to dyeing the hair as follows:

"It was reported that the Jews and Christians refrained from dyeing the hair, regarding such beautification and adornment as contrary to piety and devotion, and not befitting rabbis, priests, and ascetics. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) forbade Muslims from imitating these people or following in their ways, in order that Muslims might develop their own distinctive and independent characteristics in appearance and behavior.

Al-Bukhari, on the authority of Abu Hurayrah, quoted the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) as saying, 'The Jews and Christians do not dye their hair, so be different from them.'

This, however, is not a command but only a recommendation, as is evident from the actions of the Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) such as Abu Bakr and `Umar, who used to dye their hair. Others, such as `Ali, Ubay ibn Ka`b, and Anas, did not.

The question now remains as to what type of dye is to be used. Should it be black or are there any other colors? Or black should be avoided?

If a man is advanced in age with white hair and a beard, it would hardly be appropriate for him to dye his hair black. On the day of the conquest of Makkah, Abu Bakr brought his aged father, Abu Quhafah, carrying him until he had him seated in front of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). On seeing Abu Quhafah's snow-white hair, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, 'Change this, but avoid black.' (Fath Al-Bari)

In contrast, if a man is not of such advanced age or feebleness as that of Abu Quhafah, there is no harm in his using black dye. In this regard, Az-Zuhri said, 'We dyed our hair black when the face looked young, but discarded it when the face became wrinkled and the teeth decayed.' (Reported by Ibn Abu `Asim in the book on 'Dyeing the Hair')

Some of the early Muslims, including some Companions of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) such as Sa`d ibn Abi Waqqas, `Uqbah ibn `Amr, Al-Hassan, Al-Hussayn, Jareer, and others permitted the use of black dye. Some scholars do not consider the use of black dye as permissible except during time of war, with possibility of making the enemy thrown off balance by seeing all Muslim soldiers in their blossoming youth.

Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated, 'The best thing with which to dye gray hair is Henna and Katm.' (Mentioned in Fath Al-Bari) Henna makes the hair red, while Katm, a plant from Yemen, colors it black, tinged with red. Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) says, 'Abu Bakr dyed his hair with Henna and Katm, and `Umar dyed it with Henna only.'"

If you are still in need of more information, don't hesitate to contact us. Do keep in touch. May Allah guide us all to the straight path!

http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503544220

[DianaForRussFeingold]

21. Fuzzy & Blurred picture should have made it more lighter

Hmmm... It must have cost a lot to have someone flown in to his cave for the coloring job! Hmmm...I see he has a different shaped nose, too http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WjEycLali9Q

[YellowRubberDuckie]

30. More lighter?

:rofl:

[DFW]

22. He's doing ads for Aghan Formula 16?

[Bolo Boffin]

28. Osama has done this before, according to The Looming Tower.

The Looming Tower being the Pulitzer Prize-winning book by Lawrence Wright, just out in trade paperback. :) (I'm not getting anything for plugging the book. It's just dang fine.) It's a history of how Al Qaeda coalesced from Islamic fundamentalism, and how the American intelligence agencies couldn't cooperate long enough to stop 9/11. Very good book.

Anyway, the place where Osama dyed his beard is at the wedding of his son, pre-9/11 but after the Cole was bombed. He read a poem that commemorated the bombing of the Cole.

Two television cameras recorded the event, but bin Laden wasn't satisfied with the result--knowing that the poem would be featured on the Arabic satellite channels and an al-Qaeda recruitment video--so he had the cameras set up again the following morning to record his recitation a second time. He even stationed a few supporters in front of him to cry out praise, as if there were hundreds still in the hall, instead of a handful of reporters and cameramen. His image management extended to asking one of the reporters, who had taken a digital snapshot, to take another picture because his neck was "too full." He had dyed his beard to cover the streaks of gray, but he couldn't disguise the dark circles under his eyes that testified to the anxiety and sleeplessness that had become his steady companion.

This is how the world operates in the age of mass media.

[H2O Man]

34. While there are

some funny jokes on the thread, there is also evidence of a lack of knowledge about Islam. It has been common for a long, long for Islamic men to die their beards when making the pilgrimage to Mecca known as a Hajj. A henna paste that creates an orange color has been the most popular, for a reason that anyone familiar with Islam knows. There are other dyes that darken a beard.

[Me.]

42. Didn't Know

About the dyeing of beards for pilgrimages. Would you think he views the making of videos as part of his jihad?

[H2O Man]

44. From what the books

by Peter Bergen and Michael Scheuer report, he takes his "mission" to deliver a message very seriously.

I would also note than in comparing a behavior in one culture to the same type of behavior in one's own culture, errors are quite common. For example,some men in the Middle East often dye their beards for a specific religious reason, while the Americans in the "Just for Men" commercials dye theirs for another reason. Thus, it would likely be an error to assume that all men who dye their beards do so due to vanity.

[Bolo Boffin]

56. That is something that is not in Wright's book and it should have been.

Under the context that Wright brings it up, it seems clear that both then and now, Osama is using that custom to send a message. Perhaps there is some vanity involved, as in all human endeavors, but the beard darkening in preparation for a Hajj is a very potent point. Thanks for bringing it up.

[mhatrw]

65. What is the Islamic religious rationale for dying one's beard? n/t

[Sheltiemama]

45. Why orange?

I'm not familiar with Islam. Why is the orange color the most popular?


"A henna paste that creates an orange color has been the most popular, for a reason that anyone familiar with Islam knows."

[H2O Man]

48. Without attempting

to make any comment on if the hairs in question are what they are believed to be, it is because there are a few orange hairs being kept, which are believed to have been from Mohammad's beard. If they actually are or not, I do not know -- of course. But I do know that for many people, this is a part of their belief system.

We will likely never reach a point where we all understand each others' beliefs, I have been taught, but we can reach a point where we at least respect that which we do not understand, but that others view as important.

[Sheltiemama]

59. How fascinating!

I'd never heard that before.

[mhatrw]

67. Come on!

Muslims are not aliens. I'm sure any Muslim who dyes his beard for religious (or any other) reason could manage to explain his rationale in a way we could all understand if he chose to. So what is the rationale? If you don't know, fine. But don't pretend that the answer is unknowable.

[Sheltiemama]

88. I asked the question because I didn't know.

I wasn't pretending the answer was unknowable. I was interested in why orange dye would be used instead of a dark brown, for example, that would look natural. I have my hair dyed a dark brown because it's my natural color. My mother has hers dyed auburn because it's her natural color.

And I thank the poster who answered my question for educating me and others reading this thread who are genuinely curious.

[H2O Man]

89. Thank you.

The answer is hardly "unknowable." You asked a valid question, and I answered it. I appreciate that you have an open mind.

[scarletwoman]

46. I suppose I ought to apologize, I made a joke post, too. I did not know that about the tradition of

darkening ones beard for Hajj.

30 years ago I made my living as a professional "Oriental Dancer" (Belly Dancer) in Minneapolis. For several years I traveled around the U.S. attending master classes and seminars -- featuring Egyptian, Moroccan, Saudi and Turkish teachers as well as American teachers.

The focus was always on women's culture -- how they interacted with one another, how they accomodated to gender segregation, the kinds of obstacles that female performers in the Middle East had to overcome, and the celebration of the (then) fact that outstanding female dancers and singers could become genuinely beloved in the Muslim world for their talent and spirit. 30 years ago -- before the rise of religious fundamentalism.

I learned enough smatterings of Arabic -- and dyed my light brown hair a deep ebony with a carefully concocted combination of black and red henna -- to be taken for a Middle Eastern woman on many occasions; with Palestinians, Lebanese, Egyptians and Bahrainians (among others) approaching me after my performances speaking Arabic.

Oops -- sorry, I'm rambling. My point -- such as it is -- is that it's really cool to learn something new about a culture that I once was fairly immersed in, but from a very one-sided perspective.

Thank you -- and I hope you'll forgive the frivolity of my other post on this thread.

sw

[Me.]

47. Frivolity

is a better release than screaming

[H2O Man]

50. I hope that

we are all here to learn. One of the things that I value most about DU is learning about people who are different than I am. (Also, some of the jokes on this thread are very funny. DUers tend to have healthy senses of humor!)

[scarletwoman]

52. Thanks. To be honest, I was hoping my "Just For Men" post would be counted in the "funny" category.

In any case, I ALWAYS appreciate learning something new.

Thank you again,
sw

[Me.]

54. KO Just Mentioned

the 'Just For Men' angle

[blogslut]

49. Actually

I used to have a Muslim client who had me shave his back before his wedding. I didn't color his beard though. Henna is a very nice product as long as one doesn't try to put a chemical process on top of it. It does make sense, the henna for the beard.

Just the same, I have loads of skepticism about any "new" Bin Laden videos.

edit: I spell bad

[H2O Man]

51. Right.

I would not suggest that people should let other people's opinions about if the film is "real" or "fake" be the determining factor in what conclusion they reach. We should all weigh all the options, consider the factors, and decide based on facts. My point is simply that the dyed beard should be considered in the context of Middle Eastern culture, rather than "Just for Men" commercials.

[Canuckistanian]

62. Somehow, I don't think OBL is going on a Hajj any time soon

Mecca is patrolled intensively by Saudi security forces and they'd LOVE to make him a gift to the US of A.

[H2O Man]

71. I agree

with the first part. Of course, a Muslim is only requyred to undertake one Hajj, if possible. I also agree that there are security forces there. I'm not sure if there are many folks from Saudi Arabia who are intent upon making such a gift to the USA, however.

[mhatrw]

64. Can you supply any references that discuss this practice?

Thanks.

[treestar]

94. Could he be making that pilgrimage?

What a great opportunity to capture him!

:sarcasm:

[Me.]

39. Interesting & Informative

Considering the picture of him we've been fed, I wouldn't have thought he'd be concerned with vanity. Of course, there is the ego thing and I'm betting he has a huge one.

[Bolo Boffin]

57. Image management is a different thing from simple vanity. n/t

[H2O Man]

58. Correct.

One of the basic lessons in the study of sociology is to be careful not to apply one's culture's standards to other cultures.

[BrklynLiberal]

29. I think this thread is a definite DUzy candidate...

:thumbsup: :rofl:

[screembloodymurder]

33. Because when you make a video from old tapes you need a sufficient

quantity to get the speech patterns right. The CIA simply didn't have enough tape of the older OBL. The tape is an obvious fabrication.

[Joe Fields]

35. Maybe he was striking out with the women at the local bar.

So he bought 'Just For Men."

[scarletwoman]

36. Ah! His "Just For Men -- Mustache, Beard & Sideburn" hair color finally arrived!

Takes a long time to get through those mountains with a laden mule.

Even just placing the order was a pain. All those courier relays down the mountain, until Osama's shopping list finally made it into the hands of Tiny Tim in Islamabad who ran off to the local market to see if he could find it.

Off course he couldn't find the product there, so he had to head over to an internet cafe and got online

Well, thanks to his Al Qaeda, Inc. company credit card (he'd NEVER dream of misusing it -- THAT'S a oneway ticket to "martyrdom": "You are a very naughty Tiny Tim, the only way you can make it up is to drive a truck bomb into a Baghdad market."), he can make the order online. Shipping costs are a bit steep, and concerned that someone higher up might get pissed off at the extravagance, he opts for ocean freight instead of FedEx. Bad move -- that's why Tiny Tim was reduced to his sum molecules, scattered under the sheltering sky in Iraq, sometime back in early 2006.

Meanwhile, a replacement for Tiny Tim was found, who was solely tasked with watching for the ship to come in (no credit card access), and then run his ass off to tell Mohammed about it. Mohammed informed his superior who then collected the package and delivered it to a certain address. Insh'Allah, this part came off with no hitch.

Once delivered to the certain address, the package is added to the next mule shipment headed into the mountains.

Well, it's a long rough journey, of course. And for security reasons, no one mule driver is entrusted with the entire route -- like the journey down the mountain, the journey back up is conducted in relays. Packages passed off from one hand to another in select villages along the route.

So I think that it's perfectly reasonable to assume that the sudden appearance of a non-greybeareded Osama after all the years of a greybearded Osama is perfectly logical. It just took a really, really long time for that package of "Just For Men -- Mustache, Beard & Sideburn" men's hair color to make it up to his cave.

Please put away your tinfoil hats!

sw

[WTF cubed]

37. Because Lou Dobbs got a new Dye Job? n/t

[brettdale]

38. Perhaps

He went on that show "How to look ten years younger" and had a makeover.

[Cobalt-60]

41. he's been striking out with the ladies

One of them called him grandpa.

[tabasco]

43. No play for Mister Gray!! n/t

[pitohui]

53. maybe he's getting old? EOM

.

[Kip Humphrey]

60. V-A-N-I-T-Y?

or...
its fake.

[Cha]

61. osama doesn't want people

to say he looks old and gray these days? Somebody went overboard retouching old vids?

[Ghost in the Machine]

63. He wants to make a good impression on the 70 virgins he's getting ready to meet??

:shrug:

[Ravy]

66. Disguise.

If it doesn't work, I bet he tries fake glasses next.

[Me.]

72. !

:rofl:

[Megahurtz]

85. Lol!

:spray:

[Norrin Radd]

68. He was celebrating losing all that "Fat Osama Tape" weight...

[SoCalDem]

70. He ran out of "Gee , Your Beard Looks Scruffy-licious"? n/t

[newportdadde]

73. why do 99% of suburban moms between 25-40 dye their hair blonde?

Lifes mysteries I guess.

[lonestarnot]

75. Bleach it. Bleach not dye. Different.

Think it has to do with roots.

[mmonk]

76. He could have a make over in the caves if he wants to.

The "caves" are really well equipped and were created by the US in Tora Bora when al Queda was an US asset. Truth is though, I doubt he is in any cave right now.

[baldguy]

77. The actor they got to play him is working off an old photo.

[dysfunctional press]

78. maybe he got started on viagra first...

and found out that it's "no play for mr. grey..."

[OmmmSweetOmmm]

79. Osama?

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[dancingme]

81. he didn't want to be mistaken for Barbara Bush

[Me.]

82. The Best

:applause:

[librechik]

86. apparently it's the latest hip thing among bearded fanatics

personally, I think it really blows the street cred. But the babes really dig it.

[B Calm]

87. Only his cave dwelling beautician would know the truth...

[KoKo]

90. He want's to look "Young and Fit" like Liddy and Bob Dole and many in Congress who get

dye jobs and eye lifts. It's just what one does when one is a "Media Star" (and Osama has had billions spent on two American Invasions and one to come in Iran...on his "image.")

I imagine he has an Agent who coordinates his "Press Releases." :sarcasm:

[Poiuyt]

92. I hear that Osama went on Queer Eye for the Straight Guy

"Osama, you look faaaabulous!!"

[Deja Q]

93. Because the sheen black distracts us from the smaller size beanie he's wearing.

:hide: