Every time I see someone whine about tattoos, I get annoyed. Why? Well, for one, I currently have six tattoos myself (with ambitions to get more). I also get annoyed on behalf of tattoo artists, who are among some of the most highly-skilled individuals I have ever met.

One of the arguments against them is that they do not make constructive contributions to society, but that’s subjective reasoning, and guess what? It can be argued that numerous forms of art do not make constructive contributions to society. It’s entirely subjective as to whether or not the Mona Lisa contributes to society. It’s a matter of taste as to whether Picasso was a great artist. Did Stan Lee truly make a tangible difference to the world through his comic book creations, or did he merely provide frivolous entertainment to the masses?

An argument can be made that tattoo artists do contribute to society, because they set up businesses, employ people, and contribute to their local economies. It doesn’t get much more constructive than that. If they all went out of business tomorrow, numerous local economies would be poorer, with all sorts of knock-on effects. In fact, globally, the tattoo industry is worth $1.89 billion, and could reach nearly $4 billion by 2030. That’s a fair bit of value to lose, especially due to unreasonable prejudices, right? It goes to show that a lot of people are employed by this industry, and so its contribution is actually quite constructive, no?

If you object to tattoos on religious grounds, fine, don’t get one. No one is forcing you to. No one is forcing you to watch any film genre you deem ‘unconstructive’, or listen to any music you believe does not contribute to society. That doesn’t mean your personal views about the merit and nature of those contributions are fact. Wind in your arrogance.

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