"One of these players is not like the other, which one's different. do you know?" I don't know if anyone remembers that song from Sesame Street when they were a kid. In case you don't get it Dennis Rodman kind of stands out more in this picture.Dennis Rodman caused alot of talk when I was a kid. Someone with that crazy of a body image was un heard of at the time. He was kind of the trend setter for many athletes in our day. However, I haven't noticed as many crazy hair dos in sports these days.
Was Rodman the start of this trend among NBA players? We can look at at alot of the players these days and their arms are just as decorated as Rodman's. One player I noticed that has kept his 
image clean on the court is Dwyane Wade. If I were as ripped and in shape as Wade I would never mark up my body like some of the others.
image clean on the court is Dwyane Wade. If I were as ripped and in shape as Wade I would never mark up my body like some of the others.I'm not a fan at all of Tattoos. When I watch basketball these days alot of the players just look dirty with their arms all marked up with images. I like watching players like Kobe and Lebron play just because of their amazing talent. However, I just don't like what they have done to their bodies.
While writing this blog I was watching American Idol. For those that are into it this year will know that there is another contestant from Utah in it this year named Megan Joy. I think she is such a pretty girl but everytime I look at her arm I just get grossed out. I am not a fan at all of the tattoo on her arm.
My dad walked in while she was singing and noticed her arm and said. "What a waste of a pretty girl." That's coming from my dad who does not like tattoos either.
In class we talked about the many reasons why people get tattoos and we came up with some good reasons. However, I think the only way to really understand is to talk to people who have one and ask why and what they were doing with their life at the time they got it.
I have talked to many people that regret ever getting a tattoo. One of my good friends regrets ever getting one. He looked into getting it removed but the person that put it on scarred his arm up too much that the mark will always be there even if they remove the ink.
One reason why I think people get tattoos is that at that time of their life there was something that drove them to that decision. I think tattoos represent a certain time period in people's life. I am sure that a lot of people that get them look back on it after a few years and would love to just have them removed.
Question: What is your opinion on why people get tattoos and decorate their bodies and do you think with time most people regret ever getting them in the first place?
34 comments:
I think there are definitely many different right answers to this question. A lot of my family and friends have traditional polynesian tattoos. I feel tattoos like this are completely different from what has been discussed in class. Nobody regrets getting these ones--or at least I have yet to meet someone who has expressed that feeling. As for tattoos that people get for other reasons besides heritage, I think it's a form of expressing individuality. You'll enjoy it while you're still that individual, but since people change throughout life, they may not still enjoy it at a later point when they're a different individual.
I agree with Brooke, there are tons of reasons people get tattoos. I think the main reason Brooke touched on, it's to be original. Its something that no one can exactly imitate. It's yours... forever, and is a permanent part of your image.
i know one lady who i respect and her body is covered in tattoos. many people like her don't know any better because they don't fully understand that they have immense self-worth in the eyes of God. she happens to have a large tatt on her back as a tribute to her baby daughter who died. in her mind, she wanted to remember her daughter always and a tatt helps her do so. i think some regret it when they age and their skin doesn't look so good.
People are always changing, every day, every month, every year, etc. When one marks their body at a certain time, they are bound to change. Everyone is learning, growing, and experience new things, it's just a part of life. People who get tattoos will probably regret it at some point in their life just because life happens and people change. Just think back five years. What were you like? Are you different now? What if you got a tattoo of your favorite band from seven years ago...yeah, i'd probably regret it too...
like we talked about in class, i think many people get tattoos for acceptance. they want to be "individuals," yet it is a trendy way to be an individual, hence, it is following the crowd.
I had a friend that almost got a tattoo because of excessive weight loss she had stretch marks and wanted something beautiful on her. So we talked about her feelings and then what the church has talked about (she's LDS) and in the end, she didn't get the tattoo, but I think a lot of people get tattoos so that they can feel beautiful. My current friends with a tattoo don't regret their tattoo yet (non-LDS) . . . I think it comes out later.
I believe that tattoos are just a phase in a persons life. I look at phases that I've had in my life: hair dying, Doc Martens, hoodies... they all eventually fade. However, they aren't permanent. In some aspects, there may be regrets. But if the tattoo is truly significant or symbolic, likely regret will never be present.
I also believe people get tattoos for various reasons. Not all people get them to be unique or individual. However, I do believe that may be one of the main reasons. It might also blend with heritage. Someone may want to be unique with their heritage or something.
I think tattoos are interesting because I feel like people get them for various reasons. I think some people like the rush of getting a tattoo and just like we discussed in class, they view their bodies at a canvas. I think eventually though, people regret it as they change not only in maturity, but their physical bodies change and therefore so does the tattoo.
I don't think there's one specific reason why people get tattoo's, and as much as it flashes "look over here"...I'm pretty sure they're not getting it for the approval of everyone else. I agree that it creates individuality and makes people "original", but it's not the same as dying your hair. The permanency of a tattoo is what I think eventually creates regret.
The majority of my friends who have received tattoos already regret getting them. They either wish they didn't do it because they feel guilty about it, they no longer feel like the image or words they got represent who they are now, or they didn't think that it looks as cool on them as they did before getting it done.
When friends started getting tattoos it was because they were 18 and the could. It seemed to be an elite group just because they were born before others were and it can also be a slightly elite group because they can handle the pain (this is coming from someone who, at 18, got my ear cartilage pierced and fainted, falling out of the chair). It gave them a mark that not all could have, and they relished in it. After doing this, I think they realize what a rash decision it was and how immature of a thought it had been.
Like I said in the other post, most people I know regret getting the tattoos they have. Most got them on a whim, and now look back with a sense of remorse. I think that tattoos that are especially trendy go out of style quickly, leaving people to regret them sooner rather than later.
Oh there is no question about it, the day will come when those with tattoos will regret having them - whether that time is motherhood or fatherhood or old age or in the afterlife. Tattoos are one of the grand symbols of immaturity and adolescence. We all grow out of it, and when we do, we usually regret those kinds of things.
It takes alot of humility for someone to express regret.
Tattoos often are a marking of pride. (not always, but often.)
I know some of my friends and family members with tattoos are too proud to admit how dumb or ugly they look, and I feel like they secretly do regret having them.
Regretting at tattoo to me would almost entirely depend of the reason they got it in the first place. My best friend from highschool got a tattoo a few years ago....after about 2-3 years of deciding what he wanted. I don't think he'll ever regret it. Nor my other friends dad who for his birthday got his tat re-inked so it looked new, courtesy of his wife.
I think we usually regret the decisions we make in haste or rash decisions when "chemically imbalanced" either emotionally or with the help of a substance.
Like you said, I think there are numerous reasons people get tattoos. I have talked to people with them and some say they got one in memorial of a loved one who past away, to mark a certain period in their life, to help identify themself, or just plainly thought it was cool. However, as a person gets older I feel it is even more unattractive. Think of our elderly friends with saggy skin...now add a tattoo to the mix...not cute. I would think that with time and age, people with tattoos regret their decision and contemplate removal.
Tattoos are an interesting work of art because just like any other type of art they have periods where it is considered amazing and wonderful. But if you were to look at that art a couple years later it wouldnt be as beautiful as it was once considered. I think it is the same with tattoos because styles come and go to society but beauty does lie in the eyes of the beholder so as long as you think whats on your skin is beautiful, thats all that matters. But sometimes that beauty can change and can lose it beauty.
I agree with everyone else that there are many different reasons that people get tattoos. I think for the most part people get them to show their individuality. In my dad's line of work he had to remove a lot of tattoos and would always tell me how his patients regretted ever getting them.
its just another way of expressing yourself, a way of that we make ourselves unique and individual. I am sure that some people will regret having gotten them done, however other people will just see it as a story to tell.
People get tattoos because it's unique, individualistic, and to most who get them, art.
I think there are many different reasons why people choose to get tattoos, so I think reasoning can be pretty subjective to the person. However, I really believe that it is a very popular fad right now. We are a generation raised on television watching seeing all different types of heros every night. Some people look at tattoos and see them as beauty and art. As for people regretting them, I think it might be a generalization to say that everyone does or does not. I know a lot of guys that have had them for a long time and they don't really regret them too much. More commonly I hear of girls regretting them once they realize that their wedding photos might have to showcase the ink they had done on their arms a few years ago.
As we discussed in class, the reason people get tattoos is individual and varied for each person. I think that most people regret the tatoos that they decided to get on a whim. However, the tatoos that have cultural significance, they probably cherish near to a religion.
I whole heartedly agree with the statement that tattoos reflect a certain time period in a persons life. I know that this might seem disconnected but it reminds me of the scripture that says spiritually minded is life eternal. When we make decisions that clearly show a lack of foresight, then we can know that our decision was not completely thought out. A series of there decisions can lead to a boat load of regret, or maybe a tattoo that says something about our outlook on life when maybe we didnt feel so optimistic or didnt have anything close to a long term or eternal perspective. But I have found that when I make decisions, even petty ones like should I have a bowl full of sugar or some fruit for breakfeast this morning, and then receive a burst of optimism towards the future, like that I want to run a marathon in a couple of months, my previous decisions will help me to attain that goal and not hinder my abilities and make me throw the idea out the window.
of the friends I have who have tattoos they all wish that they didn't do it now. One has a barb-wire on the bicep and every time he's at the beach with his family he has to explain to his nephews why he has it.
Personally, I wouldn't get a tattoo, for various reasons, one being that I know I would regret it. I would feel physically dirty, with ink on my body. I think people regret getting tattoos because sometimes they get them as a result of a dare or a lost bet, or in the 'heat of the moment.'
yes I think most people regret getting them. I think they get them becuase they think its cool
I would bet that 90% of people who get tattoos at some point in their lives will regret it. However, the number of people who will ADMIT to regretting it is zero. I think a main inspiration is just honestly that it's a whim. It's a phase of their life that someday they will get out of and then regret ever getting it in the first place.
p.s. REBBIE was posting under ben's name. sorryy.
I think there are a lot of reasons why people get tattoos. One being that the tattoo makes them feel better or cooler. I bet most people regret them when they get older because most of the time I think they get them when they were kids trying to be cool and as an older person, they are not as acceptable.
I think the reasons we discussed in class are pretty legitimate. Needing to fit in, identifying yourself with something or against something, being on something where you aren't thinking straight. I think if you get a tattoo to fit in with a temporary fad then of course you'll regret it. I think there is a culture though, and I'm talking within the states, where getting a tattoo is a right of passage and so people don't regret it because it's a deep rooted cultural thing as opposed to a teen-age young adult need to rebel.
I once thought that everyone would regret them at some point. But after having talked to many people about the issue, it seems there is a large group that never regrets the decision. They knew the choice was permanent and are happy with it...
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