If you want a historical parallel to Osama bin Laden and this whole terror thing, I think the Nazis are the best example, to wit:
They took a desperate people and gave them a promise of world domination and a 'super race';
They had zealots whose belief in their (albeit earthly leader) superseded any fear they had of death.
Having said that, I think that we're going to dispatch this clown bin Laden (who I think was too quickly assigned blame for this) and our leaders are going to come up with evidence linking our friend Saddam Hussein to all of this.
Time to cancel that Iraqi timeshare, my friends.