I'd not think painting a flower would make it lovelier or more of an artistic achievement. Why, then, a person?
There are so many things that can make us an individual, but; a hackneyed drawing isn't one of them. To my eyes, a tatoo is a cry for individuation gone awry.
If everybody is doing it how can it be something that sets YOU apart?
NOT doing it would set you apart.
I don't judge people for the choices they make. I do react to their choices privately. It almost always is sadness and not disdain or contempt.
"Look, I'm different; I'm special" could just as easily be spoken and would just as easily be seen as a pathetic neediness.
I grew up in a world where third world nations produced tribes that tatooed; where sailors and prison inmates tatooed out of sheer boredom and disdain and perhaps self-loathing. So, I guess you could say my reactions are primed by these things.
A bone through the nose, Ubangi lip discs and tatoos are all just dandy if you like them. I see it differently. I see it as something bizarre.
And yes, I know it's ME they wish to shock. It is the expression of horror on my face they long for. I represent everything they are fighting against and wish to marginalize. Why? Because I consider my own self different because I simply am the person I am without artifice or compliance with the pressure of a social norm.
Go ahead and hate me. Villify my backwardness. Feel sorry for me. We mirror each other in this way.
Life is about choices. Tatoos reflect very peculiar neuroses.
I don't expect anybody to agree with me. But, the question was asked "How do you FEEL about Tatoos?" and this is my honest response.