Things not to do for money...

[denny]

Woman gets online casino URL tattooed on forehead for $15,000

I've discussed this story on a few IRC channels and other people's journals today. The conversation has often moved around to something along the lines of 'should there be a law against it?'

Personally I don't think it should have been illegal. However, what I would have liked to see is for every single tattoo studio in the world to have refused to do the work on ethical and aesthetic grounds.

At the end of the day, I think the image of their industry is harmed in two ways by this kind of stupidity. Not only do they now look like people who'll do anything for money, but also it's so horrendously tasteless - is it really cool to have a tattoo any more when people are going around with things like this permanently engraved on them?

I'm sure if you ask that studio then they'll say 'Oh, but someone would have done it - if not us, then somebody else'. If nobody used that excuse then the world would probably be a better place, imho.


Other issues that have been raised are the pitiful sum of money raised (about a year's private tuition?), and also, how happy the kid is going to be about all this ("Uh, thanks mum... you know you're never allowed to meet me from school ever again, right?")

Comments

[ulorin-vex.livejournal.com]

the stupidity of people never ceases to amaze

[dennyd.livejournal.com]

I've been trying to decide if people are actually getting stupider, or if the 'net has just made the high-profile cases more high-profile... I think it might be a bit of both. I blame it all on the USA personally ;)

[fizzybean.livejournal.com]

Ok here's an opposing point of view for you.. There was a time I would have agreed with you but I once went out with a tatooist and her attitude which I now agree with is that your body is your property and no busy body moralising authority or anyone else for that matter has a right to interfere. Your body is yours. If you want to tattoo a picture of Anne Widecombe on your forehead , remove one of your legs surgically or kill yourself that should be your look out..

my 2p..

[dennyd.livejournal.com]

I don't think that's an entirely opposing point of view - you'll notice I said I didn't think it should be illegal. If the woman had tattooed it on there herself I'd figure that was fine. Incredibly stupid and ugly, but fine :) Also if a tattooist who thought it was a totally cool idea had done it, I could live with that (although I'd be really worried about anyone with that sense of aesthetics making permanent marks on people!)

One of the things I was trying to convey is that I think tattooists should have been turning this job down on grounds of taste and style as much as anything else - they're artists, and quite well paid artists at that - they don't have to do every piece of shit commision that they're asked to do :)

[goddesssnoweh.livejournal.com]

They don't have to, no. but then again you don't know how much the tattooist charged for the work.

I agree with Fizzy, after having been around tattooists for a while i know that they do see your body as your property. I don't know many tattooists who would *refuse* to do a job on moral grounds

[dennyd.livejournal.com]

All the ones who've worked on me spoke to me about work they've refused. Most particularly, the example fizzy gives of tattooing partner's names on people - all three of the tattooists I've gone to had signs up saying that they refused to do it. They know from experience that it's not a good idea.

That's why they do have the right (and perhaps, a moral obligation) to turn down the work, in my opinion - their experience of what is and isn't a stupid tattoo is far broader than any one customer's will be.

If you could get a tattoo removed invisibly, and all that a fuck-up cost a stupid customer was a lot of money, then I'd be all in favour of letting people make their own mistakes. While a stupid customer ends up with a choice between permanently marked or permanently scarred, then I think it's not good enough to wash your hands of all responsibility for the work you do.

[fizzybean.livejournal.com]

Maybe the point is that that woman with the casino url needed to experience her own stupidity. My ex used to have to tattoo endless names of boyfriends on the arms of young women knowing they were almost certainly going to have to be covered up. In fact a lot of her business was cover ups.

My favourite tattoo has got to be this one (http://www.thaisriolfi.blogger.com.br/tattoo%20steve-o.jpg). Nothing says I don't give a damn quite like that does hehe

Found you through my little goddesssnoweh by the way.

Added you, hope that's cool. :)

[dennyd.livejournal.com]

You're more than welcome to add me, if my journal looks worth reading :)

See my reply to snoweh above about the 'let them learn from their mistakes' viewpoint.