Former National Guardsman Experiencing Life Reversals "Reverts" to Islam, Self-Radicalizes, Longs to Hook Up With ISIS

The most disturbing part of the tale is the self-radicalization, which goes to show that you don' t need a radical imam, an al-Awlaki type, to put your head--and your body--in a really bad place:

Morgan’s radicalization appears to have been a self-process. A long-time acquaintance said that Morgan began keeping close tabs on the wars in the Middle East, stopped body building, was significantly less social and worked at unusual hours. 

“(Morgan’s) Facebook posts were a bit extreme at times, and there were some volatile statements in there. Some things that he would say that would make me think, ‘you know this guy was going to the extreme with this,’” said Bryan Beaver, a co-worker of Morgan’s for 15 years. “Derogatory statements toward Israel, some statements about infidels. Things like that.” 

During that period, Morgan took on the outward appearances of a Muslim, shaving his head and wearing a small hat. He began an Islamic Center in the center of town. 

“I would not classify myself as a radical, but by Western definition, I would be classified as a radical,” Morgan said of his beliefs. “I just consider myself to be a practicing Muslim.” 

In January, Morgan began to actualize those beliefs and as well as what had become his new dream: to join the Islamic State. He traveled to Lebanon, where he searched for a way to cross the border into Syria. On Twitter, he changed his name to Abu Omar al-Amreeki and called himself a mujahid, a wager of jihad

Six months later, he had pledged his allegiance to the self-appointed caliph of the Islamic State, Abu Baker al-Baghdadi.

The dude was a lost soul. In another time, he might have fallen for a slick televangelist and been "saved". It is his misfortune that he's living when radical Islam is ascendant and thus terribly appealing to many who long to bring meaning and order to their messed up lives. And, of course, let's not forget another enticement: the retinue of worshipful virgins that's promised if one dies while waging jihad.