# Was Osama bin Laden a very warm, nice, friendly looking guy? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 2, 2011, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486 "2011-05-02T16:27:55Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Shmendrik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Shmendrik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shmendrik)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/1 "2011-05-02T16:27:55Z")
My overwhelming impression whenever I see most photos or videos of OBL (other than some of the taped messages where he’s staring straight at the camera) is that he looks very warm, friendly, nice, caring, etc. Am I crazy? ---
**Author:** ![Phlosphr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/c68b51/32.png) [@Phlosphr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Phlosphr)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/2 "2011-05-02T16:36:00Z")
No, not crazy. But what do looks have to do with whether or not you are deemed “good” or “bad”? Have you ever heard of Ted Bundy? -\> Warm, nice looking guy, \*and \*a serial killer. ---
**Author:** ![astro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9dc877/32.png) [@astro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astro)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/3 "2011-05-02T16:36:32Z")
He was (by all accounts) very charming and charismatic when he wasn’t blowing stuff up… ---
**Author:** ![Shmendrik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Shmendrik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shmendrik)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/4 "2011-05-02T16:37:11Z")
> [@Phlosphr](#): > > No, not crazy. But what do looks have to do with whether or not you are deemed “good” or “bad”? > > Have you ever heard of Ted Bundy? -\> Warm, nice looking guy, \*and \*a serial killer. Nothing at all, I agree. I was just wondering whether other people think he looked sort of like a Middle Eastern Santa Claus. ---
**Author:** ![NinetyWt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/cc9497/32.png) [@NinetyWt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NinetyWt)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/5 "2011-05-02T16:38:07Z")
Not especially warm and friendly, but not menacing or sinister either. He looked like a normal middle eastern man to me. ---
**Author:** ![Rushgeekgirl](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rushgeekgirl/32/3715_2.png) [@Rushgeekgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rushgeekgirl)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/6 "2011-05-02T16:39:46Z")
I don’t see it at all. He had that look of an abuser, like he was trying very very hard to keep his composure while the camera was on with a lot of anger in his eyes. He didn’t look nice or friendly at all. ---
**Author:** ![Ephemera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8baadc/32.png) [@Ephemera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ephemera)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/7 "2011-05-02T16:46:55Z")
Yes. I always thought Stalin did too. Appearances can obviously be deceiving. ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/8 "2011-05-02T16:48:36Z")
His upper lip always seemed to be curled into a perpetual sneer. Course, it’s probably more relaxed now. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Batty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jack_batty/32/3201_2.png) [@Jack\_Batty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Batty)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/9 "2011-05-02T16:51:12Z")
He’s just got those weird Svengali eyes. Other then that, he looks like any other random Saudi who I don’t know from Adam. ---
**Author:** ![Shmendrik](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Shmendrik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shmendrik)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/10 "2011-05-02T16:56:09Z")
> [@lieu](#): > > His upper lip always seemed to be curled into a perpetual sneer. Course, it’s probably more relaxed now. I agree he does have a bit of a sneer in the picture which is on the BBC front page now: [![](http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/52447000/jpg/_52447985_52447924.jpg) ](http://news.bbcimg.co.uk/media/images/52447000/jpg/_52447985_52447924.jpg) But the pictures I’m thinking of are more like this one from the NYTimes obit: [![](http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/05/02/world/02binladen3_span/02binladen3_span-articleLarge.jpg) ](http://graphics8.nytimes.com/images/2011/05/02/world/02binladen3_span/02binladen3_span-articleLarge.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![lieu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c2a13f/32.png) [@lieu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lieu)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/11 "2011-05-02T16:58:44Z")
Happiness is a warm AK-47. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/12 "2011-05-02T17:10:31Z")
He never smiled in any picture I saw, always looked neutral or stern/taciturn. How would you get warm/nice/friendly out of his facial expressions? Or is there a smiling picture of him that I managed to miss? Oh I do see the second one linked above, where he is smiling. Yeah he doesn’t look like a big jerkface in that one. ---
**Author:** ![rocking\_chair](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rocking_chair/32/2918_2.png) [@rocking\_chair](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rocking_chair)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/13 "2011-05-02T18:24:20Z")
most people who get a big cult following are friendly, good looking guys. if they look as crazy as their ideas no one would follow them. charlie manson is really the only one i can think of that doesn’t fall into that stereotype. remember that twilight zone episode… the devil is the young gorgeous robert redford. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 6:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/14 "2011-05-02T18:44:34Z")
Hm, warm and caring no. Charismatic, yes. I can remember seeing a picture of him from a fairly long time ago where he was very carefully groomed and dressed - I believe it was a formal portrait [cant find it online now =(] with a much shorter beard where he looked sort of like a teacher or administrator of some sort where he looked much more civilized. I have never been one for that shaggy bearded guerilla look. ---
**Author:** ![Winston\_Smith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@Winston\_Smith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winston_Smith)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/15 "2011-05-02T18:47:04Z")
> [@Shmendrik](#): > > My overwhelming impression whenever I see most photos or videos of OBL (other than some of the taped messages where he’s staring straight at the camera) is that he looks very warm, friendly, nice, caring, etc. Am I crazy? My wife always said the exact same thing, and eventually I guess I came around to agreement. I voted accordingly. That’s not to say he was a menace, and the world is a better place without him. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/16 "2011-05-02T18:54:31Z")
I voted Other. I never thought he seemed nice, but I had noted that he didn’t have that intense, crazy look, and a rather calm exterior. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/17 "2011-05-02T19:01:35Z")
I’ve always found it ironic that (to me, at least) he looked friendly, approachable. Note: How nice to use the past tense “looked.” . ---
**Author:** ![SciFiSam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/47e85d/32.png) [@SciFiSam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SciFiSam)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/18 "2011-05-02T19:03:04Z")
A bit. Dubya looked like an adorable teddy-bear. ---
**Author:** ![YaraMateo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/58f4c7/32.png) [@YaraMateo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/YaraMateo)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/19 "2011-05-02T19:13:40Z")
> [@astro](#): > > He was (by all accounts) very charming and charismatic when he wasn’t blowing stuff up.. Aren’t most sociopaths good lucking and charming? ---
**Author:** ![Winston\_Smith](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e95f7d/32.png) [@Winston\_Smith](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Winston_Smith)\ **Post date:** [May 2, 2011, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486/20 "2011-05-02T19:24:25Z")
> [@Winston\_Smith](#): > > My wife always said the exact same thing, and eventually I guess I came around to agreement. I voted accordingly. That’s not to say he was a menace, and the world is a better place without him. ‘wasn’t’ :smack: Bad Osama! Bad! Bad! [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/was-osama-bin-laden-a-very-warm-nice-friendly-looking-guy/580486.md?page=2)