Ron, Khaled, Krimel... [Ron] I agree, good post. I see young men with spiderweb tattoo's on the elbow which symbolizes murdering somone in the joint, usually a hate crime. I get the idea that these fella's have no idea what it means other than it looks cool.
[Arlo] Yeah, I think its an outgrowth of "gangsta chic", where the idea is to emulate being a criminal, through symbolism and mannerisms, while not actually being a criminal. Like you say, I bet many don't even really know what something "means", only that it has some "criminal aspect" as so they feel it gives them some "cred". But I'd hate to walk into the wrong bar with the wrong tattoo, and be cornered for being a poser. [Ron] Arlo, knew some Pagans, pretty nice guys for the most part but as you say, there is a time to give them a wide berth, they have no problem hurting people.. [Arlo] I've spoken to a few outlaw members over the years. I'm sure many are nice guys, and I've personally never had any trouble. But these are not the people to try to act like an alpha-dog around. I know when to sit with my beer and control my testosterone. The tattoos help me know when a sarcastic comment is best left unspoken. [Khaled] Ah, the American version of Fleur-de-lis, I like that. The question is where to put it. [Arlo] I nominate Krimel's forehead. ;-) [Khaled] on an another note, I like you call it an early warning system. The sad part here is that they hijacked the local college's mascot, and now you don't dare wear a shirt with a bulldog on it unless you are walking in and out of a football game, a basketball game or you are on campus. All the local high-schools have forbidden the wearing of red, blue, or any clothing with a bulldog on it. [Arlo] Its a problem in many areas. When I lived in Chicago, local gangs took the colors of the Bears and the Bulls. Another gang used the Oakland Raiders colors. Wearing sports stuff was dangerous. I guess schools can go with pastels for their colors, and things like Pixies and chipmunks for their mascots... that should alleviate some of the problem. [Krimel] But let's just call this one of those things we agree to disagree about. People are free to do what ever they want to do and I say God bless them for it. But a fern growing out of even the shapeliest rear end still says Stamp Tramp. There is no more reliable indicator of aconvenience store career path than love and hate on the knuckles. [Arlo] But you're examples speak of the fashion-commoditization I was arguing against in the Ink and Steel world. One of my tattoos I designed personally (a synthesis of two healing/protections symbols from Egyptian and Norse systems) to cover some scars on my upper arm. For me, the process from design to inking was a spiritual and healing process. If that makes me bound for the life of a fry cook in your eyes, I'm a little insulted. [Krimel] To me nothing says shit for brain like ink. And I firmly believe there is an inverse relationship between surface area inked and cortical volume. It is a permanent change based a temporary whim. [Arlo] Speaking to the many who do it for fashion or shock, perhaps. But I know many whose ink is a personal story of passage, transformation and healing. Don't be so quick to judge. And for what it is worth, I never recommend to anyone to ink "on a whim". I do recommend recognizing years of resonating with a symbol, then transforming that symbol into a personal expression, and then to place that symbol as one would place a sacred message. [Krimel] I see the arms of WWII vets where all that art and solidarity have blurred into blue-black smudges that even plastic surgeons can not remove. [Arlo] The life of a tattoo represents the inability to lock any symbol fast in time. The all fade and blur. It also represents the body's absorbtion of the symbol. I've never met a vet who regretted his ink, by the way, although I am sure there are. What some have regretted is the fading, but that's emblamatic of the faded glory days behind us all. moq_discuss mailing list Listinfo, Unsubscribing etc. http://lists.moqtalk.org/listinfo.cgi/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org Archives: http://lists.moqtalk.org/pipermail/moq_discuss-moqtalk.org/ http://moq.org.uk/pipermail/moq_discuss_archive/
