Ol' Grizzler

I've been thinking about my beard; not just my beard, but beards & what they mean to the world.
There was a time when we had beards because we had nothing better to shave with than stone. It was cold and the wind whipped the chins of children, we grew beards and were warmer, in fact, it became a sign of adulthood and wisdom.
Ancient philosophers grew beards and it was part of their professional appearance. The knights Templar were charged to crop their hair short and never cut their beards as a sign of humility and lack of untowards physical vanity. Now, I shave my head for the sake of vanity and have a proud beard.
Vagrants and drifters have beards for a combination of reasons - lack of vanity, lack of a shaving kit, warmth, insanity - maybe they are time travelling philosophers of a classic age (or from some derilict paradise of a future).
How are we seen, men with beards? To shave or not to shave now, that is my question.