I'm not "young enough to know everything" (and surely you understand my tagline. And I'm not so old that I don't have a lick of commonsense left either. I know that some people refuse to do business with those who are pierced or tatooed. That is their right, but it doesn't make them "right".
All I'm trying to say is that perhaps some people shouldn't be so quick to judge some of these people. My mother used to say, "don't judge a book by its cover". Those words are still true today.
Yes I do. I was making reference to what you said in the post, I should have included the comment, sorry.
If you are "Not young enough to know everything" Then your statements were oxymoronic, because you should be old enough to know better than what you said.
Your mother might have added, "Don't have beelzebub and flaming skulls tattooed on your arm, chest, or forehead unless you're prepared to be treated like an freak, a criminal, or an idiot."
I understand your point, but there's something you need to understand. I train people to be firefighters. I tell them flatly that tattoos will damage their chances of getting a job. I strongly caution them that IF they have to get a tattoo that they should get it in a location that can be covered with a short sleeve shirt and a long pair of pants.
In my profession, and in many, we don't offend anyone. We don't offend La Raza, we don't offend the Nation of Islam, we don't offend the Ku Kux Klan, we don't offend the little old blue haired ladies, the homosexuals, the feminists or the rednecks. When we arrive on scene, people shouldn't be able to look at us and tell what kind of music we listen to, who we vote for, or what we think about the important issues of the day. We're the people who are there to try and make the worst day of their life better.
There are a lot of professions like that. They're simply not the proper avenue for self-expression. You're committing yourself to a different calling.
There's a whole subculture of tattoos. The tear below the eye supposedly means you've killed someone. Many of my Hispanic students have memorials to relatives tattooed on themselves. It's usually a name or initials in old English, or a well done portrait. The tattoos on the skin between the thumb and index finger usually mean a gang affiliation. Brands on the upper shoulder are a sports team or fraternity initiation. Some people get a tattoo to honor each of their children. Chinese script is generally something like "Lone Wolf", although I know many of the Chinese tattoo artists like to play jokes. I heard of one guy who got a Chinese script tattoo and later found out that it meant "At the end of the day, this is a very ugly boy." I know them. I understand them. They still hurt your ability to get a job.
Piercings aren't a problem because you can take them out at any time, and unless you've done something really bizarre, the hole isn't noticeable.