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How do you feel about body modification?

#41
Akami said:
I'm with Munji, Mark & Mark. (Sounds like a company name...)

Anyone that does anything to affect their appearance is trying to fit into a demographic they like the idea of belonging to, and people who do the piercings and tattoos to be different aren't different at all - they're just choosing a different demographic and not unique as much as they like to think they are, which is why they keep shooting for the one-upmanship of going ever further and further, much like any other addiction.

A couple tats, a couple piercings? Maybe it's just something they like, but the ones that go fullbore are out for a reaction so that they can react in return.

Unpopular opinion I'm sure, but true nonetheless.
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I agree to an extent here. It's naive to think you're unique for body modification when thousands across the globe are doing it. I used to think I was unique because of my piercings, but what I've realized is that the piercings themselves aren't unique, they're actually very common depending on who you frequently socialize with, but the reasons I've chosen to get into body modification are my own. We are social and cultural creatures who seek to be with our own kind, with people we have a deeper connection with, and as I said in my first post body modification is no different than music scenes/genres/subcultures that pop up when a group of people feel disconnected from a lot of what society/popular culture has to offer.


Modern Primitives and Body Modification: An Examination of Pain, the Body and Resistance in a Contemporary EuroAmerican Subculture


ugly_bassplayer said:
Ah yes, the infamous talkbass tattoo thread, always tons of fun.....:rollno:
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OMGZ YOU'RE MUTILATING YOUR BODY AND RUINING YOUR FUTURE, RARRRRGGGGGHHHH.... :scowl:
 
#43
MatticusMania said:
Personally, Im in the either or camp. I like them, but Id never ask my wife to get one because I like them. She's not really into them. She doesnt mind my tattoo, and hasnt objected to me getting more, but she doesnt plan on getting any of her own, and thats fine by me.
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I considered getting at tat once - but I could never come down on any image or symbol that meant enough to me to go for it. My sister has a "Z" tattooed on the back of her neck that looks pretty cool and I considered doing that too in a show of solidarity - but really, when it comes down to it, I'd rather spend the money on bass parts, wood, some tools or beer.

As for what other people do - if they dig it, then I do too.
 
#44
Balog said:
Including single earrings on women? Because probably the majority of women I've known over the years have at least a single hole in each ear lobe. Are culturally accepted body modifications somehow not a defilement, but whatever is not part of your cultural expectations are? And do you feel the same about plastic surgery? What about people born with say a harelip? Is surgical correction of that a defilement?
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1. No, not including single earrings in women.

2. Plastic surgery is often used to enhance one's appearance, usually out of vanity but sometimes out of necessity (after an accident, say).

3. People don't choose to be born with a hare lip.

It really doesn't matter what I think about mutilation. It puts social constraints on those who practice it, and it's their problem, not mine. It definitely affects other peoples' perception of them, some positively and some negatively. When someone who views it negatively is a potential employer or other who can affect your life, it's a handicap.

I didn't make society that way, but it is what it is. You're not going to change my opinions on this, just as I'm not going to change yours. Just FYI, I've never declined to hire someone because they have tattoos. I have, however, required some to keep them covered if they are in a position to interface with clients.
 
#46
tZer said:
I considered getting at tat once - but I could never come down on any image or symbol that meant enough to me to go for it. My sister has a "Z" tattooed on the back of her neck that looks pretty cool and I considered doing that too in a show of solidarity - but really, when it comes down to it, I'd rather spend the money on bass parts, wood, some tools or beer.

As for what other people do - if they dig it, then I do too.
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I was very close to getting a tattoo in memorium of my son, similar to what Balog posted on the previous page, but $ and having a good design kept me from doing so. In a way Im glad that it never came to be, as Im sure everytime I saw it it would remind me not only of my lost child, but of his horrible mother as well. I dont have any trouble remembering the 20 hours I was lucky enough to spend with him, so the reminder is unecessary.

There are still a few others I may get at some point in the future, but theyre not really a priority at this point.
 
#47
Munjibunga said:
1. No, not including single earrings in women.

2. Plastic surgery is often used to enhance one's appearance, usually out of vanity but sometimes out of necessity (after an accident, say).

3. People don't choose to be born with a hare lip.

It really doesn't matter what I think about mutilation. It puts social constraints on those who practice it, and it's their problem, not mine. It definitely affects other peoples' perception of them, some positively and some negatively. When someone who views it negatively is a potential employer or other who can affect your life, it's a handicap.

I didn't make society that way, but it is what it is. You're not going to change my opinions on this, just as I'm not going to change yours. Just FYI, I've never declined to hire someone because they have tattoos. I have, however, required some to keep them covered if they are in a position to interface with clients.
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None of this really "matters" per se. I'm happy that future generations won't have to deal with the social contraints you speak of, at least to the same degree.
 
#49
I have a number of tattoos. I got them because I dig them. There's nothing deeper than that. It was not about fitting in with a subculture or to "express my individuality" or any other pretentious stuff like that. I've worked a number of professional jobs with them, including IT and the federal government. I'm highly educated, so I have the ability to choose jobs where professional dress in which they are easily covered is more of an option than if I weren't educated. When the dress code calls for business casual, I have no problem wearing a button-up, because I generally dislike wearing a polo. I'm sure others have judged me negatively due to them. I'm not losing sleep over their opinions. It's fun to have someone prejudge me on my tattoos, and then blow their perception when I speak intelligently. Tattoos and peircings on the opposite gender? It all depends. Certain women can pull off a full-sleeve and have that hot Suicide Girls thing going. Others can have a rose on their arm, and they look like methheads. It's all about how you carry yourself and present other parts of your image.

...and yeah, it's another one of those tattoo threads on Talkbass.
 
#50
Bongolation said:
Nothing like a fad gesture that you can't undo and degrades at a faster rate than you do. :rollno:
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I didn't have time to read every single post, but I think you're one of the first to note that this is indeed a fad. Sure, each concept isn't new and doing things to stand out is also not new, but the permanence of what folks are doing these days and the number of people is a little surprising. Right or wrong is not for me to decide, but I had enough trouble with finding a new job when I was almost on the chopping blocks a few years back without piercings and visible tattoos. :eek:
 
#52
spade2you said:
So, if you're pro facial tattoos and heavy modification, care to post how much the average person with highly visible modifications can be expected to make?
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I'm pro "not giving a damn what others look like". Meaning, if I was at a restaurant and my waiter had face tattoos and huge stretched earlobes, I wouldn't care. Maybe I'd have my judgements of them (we all judge each others appearance) but I wouldn't act or react to how they look, I'd act or react to their actions, their character, and anything else I could pick up from my interaction with them. I felt this way before I had my piercings and I've never stopped feeling this way. I feel like there are a lot of people out there that do the opposite, they judge and then close off as if their judgement is always right before even attempting to give the person they have judgements about a chance.

I don't know how much the average person with heavy or highly visible body mods makes, nor do I care. A persons job or the amount of money they make means jack $#!t to me. I'll be the first to admit those into body modification probably make less then those who aren't... that's a product of our societies attitude towards difference. If you don't look and dress and act like the folks down the street, then you have a harder time because other people can't just accept you for who you are and what you enjoy. It's BS for a person to be denied a job because of how they look whether it was by birth in the case of skin color or by choice such as piercings and tattoos because appearance has no bearing on a persons ability to do a job nor does it say anything concrete about their character. Some of the worst people I've known looked like your average plain ol' American, and some of the nicest people I've known were covered in tattoos and piercings, and visa-versa. Appearance means jack.
 
#54
We found a new hot topic in TBOT, right up there with discussions of race and spanking kids. Tattoos and body piercings sure polarize the crowds here and bring out the strongly opinionated.

-Mike
 
#55
high-horse.jpg
 
#56
LiquidMidnight said:
I have a number of tattoos. I got them because I dig them. There's nothing deeper than that. It was not about fitting in with a subculture or to "express my individuality" or any other pretentious stuff like that.
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You got them because you dig them. That's all the reason you need, and that's fine. But passing off the reasons that others use to justify what they do, as being pretentious, is a bit ignorant. Just because you yourself don't see the justification of expressing individuality or of fitting in with a subculture as a valid one, doesn't mean it isn't valid and true for others.


spade2you said:
I didn't have time to read every single post, but I think you're one of the first to note that this is indeed a fad.
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A "fad" that's existed in various cultures all over the world for thousands of years.
 
#59
Metal Matt said:
I'm pro "not giving a damn what others look like". Meaning, if I was at a restaurant and my waiter had face tattoos and huge stretched earlobes, I wouldn't care. Maybe I'd have my judgements of them (we all judge each others appearance) but I wouldn't act or react to how they look, I'd act or react to their actions, their character, and anything else I could pick up from my interaction with them. I felt this way before I had my piercings and I've never stopped feeling this way. I feel like there are a lot of people out there that do the opposite, they judge and then close off as if their judgement is always right before even attempting to give the person they have judgements about a chance.

I don't know how much the average person with heavy or highly visible body mods makes, nor do I care. A persons job or the amount of money they make means jack $#!t to me. I'll be the first to admit those into body modification probably make less then those who aren't... that's a product of our societies attitude towards difference. If you don't look and dress and act like the folks down the street, then you have a harder time because other people can't just accept you for who you are and what you enjoy. It's BS for a person to be denied a job because of how they look whether it was by birth in the case of skin color or by choice such as piercings and tattoos because appearance has no bearing on a persons ability to do a job nor does it say anything concrete about their character. Some of the worst people I've known looked like your average plain ol' American, and some of the nicest people I've known were covered in tattoos and piercings, and visa-versa. Appearance means jack.
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Ultimately, neither of our opinions mean jack, but when you're an adult it's best to be more in line with those who hire and sign paychecks.
 

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