While watching a discussion spiral out of control and into the realm of illogical, emotional word-fighting, it struck me that this spectacle started from one person mentioning some tattoos he had on his arm. Had he said that he had a scar on his arm, no doubt someone might have asked to see it, a few people may have commented, asked how it happened, and the conversation would then have drifted off to other things. Not so with the seemingly much stronger and more powerful word “tattoo,” since it elicited such a barrage of opinion. There wasn’t a central theme for the dislike of tattoos. I picked out a few recurring statements: tattoos are permanent, you can’t get a job if you have tattoos, your body is sacred and shouldn’t be marked up, only low-life trash have tattoos, tattoos are disgusting, you’ll get infected by the tattoo needles. All these from people who (of course) don’t have any tattoos and don’t know anything about tattoos. That’s the important part – they don’t know anything about tattoos, only what little they have heard from others who also don’t know anything either.

Am I making a false assumption that these people don’t know anything about having ink in skin? I don’t think I am, and I base that on seeing exactly the same kind of reaction from people if I were to take the conversation and just change one word. Remove “tattoo” and replace it with “gun.” Those who don’t know anything about firearms will have no shortage of reasons why guns are bad, nobody should have them and a host of other commentary. The same emotion-based responses originating from a lack of real knowledge about some object that can’t do anything in and of itself as those directed at a tattoo. Granted, a tattoo can’t be used to shoot someone, though with the level of hatred some people have toward tattoos, it almost seems like they think tattoos can do some kind of damage to others. Any object, though, that has strong societal ideas attached to it and is then brought up before someone with a lack of knowledge about that object is bound to elicit an equally strong response. My point with equating guns and tattoos is I wonder whether that lack of knowledge might just make people irrationally afraid. Knowledge about guns is something I try to cover elsewhere. So, maybe some knowledge here about tattoos might give a less disjointed response about them. At least if you are going to dislike them, have an informed dislike.

The practice of tattoo has been around for thousands of years. It depends on which culture, and in what time period in that culture, whether having a tattoo would be considered a good thing or a bad thing. Tattoos seem to go in and out of favor, like various fashion trends. A tattoo is ink forced under a few layers of the skin by some kind of sharp instrument. It is intended to be permanent. It is costly and very difficult to remove. At present, if one gets a tattoo to look like a rebel, then one is going to look like all the other rebels out there, since tattoos are currently in fashion, so a lot of people have them. Whether a body is sacred and shouldn’t be marked is a personal religious view that really shouldn’t be forced on anyone else, at least I would not push my religious views on others and would suggest the same. If you have tattoos all over your face, you will probably be limiting your employment prospects, but since tattoos are so widespread, some design on your arm likely won’t be noticed at all. Given you have chosen a reputable tattoo artist who is using correct sterilization techniques, the chances of getting an infection are no greater than when getting a blood test at a doctor’s office.

“Tattoos are disgusting and only low-life trash have them.” That’s one view, and if it’s yours, then you are entitled to have it. Please note, though, that the “low-life” with the tattoos may well not think you are anything special, either. I’d suggest perhaps a bit more relaxed view of others and you might find a bit of common ground. Any kind of judgment not based on fact is never appreciated. Personally, I dislike listening to some clown running on at the mouth about how people just don’t need to carry guns and only paranoid people have guns and on and on. Obviously, Mr. or Ms. Clown has never really needed a gun, so he or she has no position from which to decide that I a paranoid. A similar person has no position from which to judge that because a person has a tattoo, that makes he or she a “low-life.” Whether or not one sees a tattoo as disgusting is a personal matter and maybe if it’s your opinion, it’s best kept a personal one. As always, you have free choice and can make your own decisions about life and tattoos and what you think about them. Some years ago, I heard a tattoo artist say that “people who have tattoos don’t care whether you do or not,” and that may be the best view to have on the entire subject.