The more I think about it, the less respect I have for the trite, and supposedly pragmatic, attack some people make on tattoos. It goes something like this: “How will that look when you’re 80?”
Basically, who gives a rat’s ass?
My suspicion is that by the time one gets to 80 years old, other areas of concern–like pooping regularly without help and figuring out whence that scratchy hair in strange places came–will dominate. You won’t be worried about whether or not your Celtic Cross still looks just as good as it used to!
The condition of your tats, and frankly, what anyone else thinks about how they look, won’t be in the Top 25 Things About Which to Worry. On top of that, let’s say you got that tattoo at 30. I submit that 50+ years of enjoyment ain’t too bad. Of course, YMMV.
That’s probably true, but it would still be a minor thing that might relate to self-image. Of more immediate concern would be the first impressions one makes. (That said, not all tattoos are created equal).
Sure, but first impressions and/or self-image issues relevant to why a person might get a tattoo are orthogonal to the point I make about the “how will that look at 80?” B.S.