I think that, for IA purposes, we should consider putting "You got mail" type messages somewhere other than this message bar.
The message bar is for direct feedback on the action the user just took. There's a causal relationship. You do something, then you see the message which confirms that you did something.
I'm afraid we'll be confusing matters if we use that same location/shape/color for other purposes.
What do other people think?
/Lars
