Let me ask you two questions:
1. Are you the kind of person who wants to look foolish to a significant number of people everyday?
2. Do you think you might like to get a tattoo?
If you answered "Yes" to number 1, then good luck to you! The world needs clowns and nonconformists of all descriptions. Hopefully, you're the kind of person who will be happy in life regardless of what others think of you. You needn't read further.
If you answered "No" to number 1, then your answer to number two becomes relevant. And, if you answered "Yes" to number two, you have a serious problem to overcome.
This is the problem. Many people think about tattoos the same way I do. I know that for a fact because I've been talking to people about tattoos for several years. Lots of people have expressed the same opinion I hold. I can safely say that a significant number of Americans agree with me. I relate tattoos to circus freaks, sailors who got drunk on shore leave, prison gangs, organized crime syndicates, and druggies. That is not a very high recommendation for tattoos. In fact, it is a condemnation.
OK, let's stop right there. Even sitting in the privacy of my own den I can hear the howls of protest from those of you who disagree with my opinion of tattoos. Allow me to make some wild guesses about what you would say: you're too old to understand; times have changed; it's art, man; you have no say about what I do with my own body; everyone is doing it; tattoos are fashionable; I think they're cool; you're nothing but an old out of touch fuddy-duddy. How'd I do? Pretty close, huh?
Now here's the shocker, I completely agree with you! There's no point at all for you to argue with me. You'd just be shouting into an empty space. It would be quite pointless.
Please refer back to question number 1. That's the issue. It really has nothing at all to do with tattoos per se. A bone in your nose, or a hat made out of tin foil, or clown shoes would work just as well as an example. The question is, do you want a significant number of people you meet every day to think poorly of you. That's really all there is to it.
You need to recognize that this problem is completely beyond your control. For the foreseeable future a significant number of your fellow citizens are going to think people who tattoo their bodies are foolish. These are people who live next door, work with you, meet you on the street, and who sit next to you at restaurants. Ultimately, they are people you are going to want as customers, employers, partners, and friends. Yes, it's true that once they get to know you their negative opinion will soften. But don't ever expect them to approve or think you made a wise choice getting tattooed. At the very best, they are going to wind up thinking you made a really dumb mistake.
I bet my words sound harsh to a person who already has tattoos. But I also think that is why you haven't read this opinion expressed before. It's like the elephant in the living room that everyone tiptoes around. We've become so politically correct that we won't risk offending anyone by telling the truth about what we think. But we think it, nonetheless. Bear that in mind the next time you show off your tattoos to someone who doesn’t have any.
If you only have one or two tattoos, consider having them removed. I see the blotchy evidence of tattoo removal every now and then, and I always think that person wised up. I give them credit for making a difficult but proper decision. If you’re already covered with tattoos, you'll just have to find a way to compensate for the difficulties they will cause. And yes, angry denial is always an out.