Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
My kids don't have a tattoo yet but they are under extreme pressure by society to get one. They tell me that nearly everyone they know has at least one tattoo. The reason most of their peer group got a tattoo? Because everyone else has one. Peer pressure, it seems like the thing to do, etc.
If you are one of those rare 20-30 years old who don't have a tattoo, why not? What percent of your friends and family your age have one?
Neither of my kids have one or would get one.
Mainly because they've grown up with mummy laughing at hipsters.
Also because I told them years ago, you may as well stitch ONE pair of shoes to your feet and wear them forever, no matter how tatty or unfashionable they become.
My kids are smart AND uninterested in other people's judgements.
I don't really see the point of them, especially the super visible ones.
I don't think there is very much pressure on kids. Those who want them seem to be getting them, but there is no one forcing a gun to the heads of those that don't.
I never got tattoos when I was in my 20s... I always thought I might want one, but figured it was something I should give serious thought to. Nobody ever tried to pressure me into getting one, and I've never seen anyone being pressured into getting one.
I don't even recall pressure to get my ears pierced when I was a kid. I just knew I liked earrings, so I got them pierced.
I got my first tattoo when I was 36. I got my 2nd when I was 44. I got my 3rd (which covered up my 1st, or rather, morphed it into more of what I'd wanted to get the first time around, but it's still the same object, just part of a much larger tattoo) when I was 45.
I'm 46 now. I dunno. I think that people who have any wits about them will choose or not choose to get a tattoo because it's what THEY want. Not what other people want.
There's a reason you have to be a legal adult to get a tattoo in most places.
I love my tattoos and I'll probably get another before I call myself done (if I ever call myself done).
I am a professional with a white-collar, specialized job and I don't always completely cover my tattoos, but my (large, Fortune 500) company also doesn't have a dress code for in-house employees so nobody cares...
Unless they're like the OP and really have some issue with tattoos.
Why not just let people have tattoos (or not) and leave well enough alone? Who cares why they want them or why they don't want them?
On edit: My husband is in his 30s and doesn't have any tattoos. When we started dating, he didn't mind that I had one, though. He doesn't mind mine now. I asked him what he thought before I got any more, because I respect him and care about what he likes.
My kids are too young to get one, except my eldest (he's 24). He will probably get one eventually, as he's got a design planned out, but it won't be visible while he's wearing work clothes because he's not established in his career yet, and despite enjoying body art, most people aren't naive enough to think they can just walk into a great company and not have someone feel they're less qualified just because they have tattoos. Which is discriminatory, but I do see the point for jobs that are customer-facing.
Ah well. The OP really does seem hung up on this issue. Strange.
__________________
When in doubt, check it out: FAQ
Most of my friends with tattoos are also smart and uninterested in other people's judgement
Same here.
__________________
When in doubt, check it out: FAQ
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
