I don't see anyone else getting all that worked up. Well, there were a few disturbing posts in between...I really dislike the term "tramp stamp" to refer to those lower back tattoos, because regardless of whether I like them or not, I don't think anyone should be calling women "tramps." Even if there were a strong correlation between the tattoo and sexual promiscuity (which I really don't believe there is), that's STILL no reason to call someone a tramp. I don't care if it's "what the kids call it," it's derogatory no matter how I look at it.
That's a different issue than the original question of whether one would date someone with a tattoo. As you pointed out, there's a difference between disagreement and disliking. I have friends who have tattoos, I don't dislike people with tattoos, but I do disagree with them about that choice. Some of them got them simply because they think they are pretty...personally, I know my taste in fashion and art has changed over the years, and likely will continue to change, so what one considers pretty when they are 20-something may not be what they still consider pretty when they are 40-something. The reason seems shallow for such a permanent modification to one's body. One friend's boyfriend has tattoos all over. When you ask him what they mean (they're all Chinese or Japanese characters...he's not even sure which), he doesn't remember. I tease him that they probably read, "Gullible American Kid." This same friend has a tattoo of her own, which is rather large and has a lot of meaning to her and was something she got after a very traumatic incident and was a reaction to that...I have to wonder if she's going to think it was such a good idea in 30 years when she's stuck with a tattoo reminding her of that trauma when she should otherwise be moving on with life, and I have to wonder if she got the tattoo as a poor way of dealing with her grief/shock over the incident, or if having it as a constant reminder might hinder her from ever fully recovering.
I don't dislike any of these people, they're my friends, but we will always disagree on the issue of tattoos. But, I choose friends differently than I choose people I'd date. The reason is that to me, I can have a lot more differences in agreement with friends than I want to have with someone I would consider dating as more than a friend. With dating, I'm looking for prospects for a life long partner. That means we have to agree on a lot more things than someone I just spend a little time with each day or each week. Each of the reasons my friends have tattoos, as varied as they are, do reflect something about their personality that I would find incompatible in a lifelong partner. In the case of the ones who just find them pretty, it isn't compatible with my sense of aesthetics. With the one who can't even remember what the characters mean, it's impulsiveness underlying the choice to get a tattoo (actually, it shows up in other things he does too...tolerable in small doses, but would drive me bonkers if I had to live with that). With the one who has the meaningful tattoo, it seemed to me like an unhealthy reaction to grief, and while I can help a friend through that a little bit, she does need to get some other help in dealing with her grief, and it's not something I could deal with in a partner who would deal with grief in that way (or really, it's more about not dealing with it and finding ways to cover or hide it).
So, again, tattoos advertise something about the person. It doesn't mean I'd dislike them as a person, it just means I wouldn't date them, because what it advertises is not compatible with my approach to life. No different, actually, than someone who really likes tattoos not wanting to date someone who would choose to NEVER get a tattoo...the same issues would work both ways, and indicates an incompatibility for a relationship that requires a higher level of compatibility than "just" friendship. The question wasn't "would you talk to someone with tattoos," it was "would you DATE" them.
I thought the same thing too, and was tempted to comment on it. I think there's an unspoken component to that argument:
) into the creases of my knuckle. If I bend my knuckle as far as it will go, it's easily visible, but it's practically invisible when I lay my hand flat.
All physical beauty does is get me to notice a girl -- but I, for one, have absolutely no interest in hitting on a total stranger. And since physical beauty is mostly irrelevant once you know a girl's personality, I really don't understand your point of view.
