Bigot News Columnist in PA: People With Tattoos are Ignorant Low-Lives

Apparently in the Lehigh Valley, PA, according to The Morning Call online journalist (those are some impressive credentials, yes? *note my sarcasm*) those of us with tattoos are all "prostitutes", "criminals", or analogous to child molesters or members of the KKK. Yes, those are direct quotes from this misguided, ridiculous hate monger known as PAUL CARPENTER.

here is the article and the link to the actual article so you can comment on what a prejudice asshole he is and see how many other imbeciles agree with his bullshit statement against our culture:


DISFIGURED SKIN POINTS WHERE CULTURE IS GOING-- By PAUL CARPENTER, The Morning Call

Disfigured skin points where culture is going
Paul Carpenter
June 18, 2008

You can tell where a culture is headed by examining whom its members seek to emulate.

Just a few centuries ago, there was a culture still mired in the Stone Age, with no written language, no science, no math, no architecture, no nothing requiring thought. Its members had not even managed to invent the wheel.

That culture's only contribution to the world was the decorative ''tatu.'' In most other parts of the ancient world, tattoos were disfigurements used only to identify criminals or slaves.

Now that Polynesians can read, use wheels, count and appreciate musical instruments other than drums, they've advanced to a point where most of them have abandoned tattoos.

As one culture ascends, it seems, another declines.

This week, we learned that 36 percent of Americans between the ages of 18 and 29 have tattoos. It was just last year The Morning Call reported that 16 percent of all Americans were thusly self-mutilated.

The sight of Mike Tyson's gorgeous artwork, no doubt, has persuaded millions to flock to tattoo joints. Or maybe it's the growing popularity of ''mixed martial arts'' bloodfests, which put tattooed subhumans into cages to brutalize each other.

''Proud parents bear tattoos honoring their kids,'' said a headline over Monday's story.

''It's super big right now,'' the story quoted Steve Lemak as saying of the mom and dad tattoo trend. He owns The Quillian joint in Allentown.

''You'll never find a more meaningful tattoo than one for your kids,'' said Kiel Ferrari, described as an ''artist'' at the Minds Eye Tattoo in Emmaus. (I also have seen graffiti vandals described as ''artists.'')

Along with the story, there were photographs of bodies mutilated with hideous ''artwork.'' One was of an arm with a truly unfortunate depiction of a child's face. I am sure the real child is cute; no child could actually be that homely.

On the very same day that our eyes were insulted by those vulgar photos, the paper ran another story elsewhere, plugging the premier showing of a new television program about the joys of prostitution.

The show was imported from England, where, the story said, ''it was aired last September and was blasted in the media for glamorizing prostitution.'' (We have an MTV show glamorizing pimps, so why not glamorize their pathetic puppets?)

I can't say I'm an expert on prostitution. I'm too parsimonious to gain first-hand knowledge. (Stories on Eliot Spitzer's $4,300 dalliances nearly gave me apoplexy.) Nonetheless, I've said a lot about both prostitution and tattoos, which, come to think of it, always seem to go together.

No one can deny that the heaviest concentrations of tattoos occur in the lowest segments of society -- prostitutes, pimps, pugs, prison inmates, Ku Klux Klansmen and the members of street and motorcycle gangs.

Now, according to this week's story, 36 percent of young people have decided to emulate such lowlifes.

And some news media want to glamorize them.

Do not glamorize accomplishment. Do not glamorize intelligence, insight or integrity. Don't glamorize courage, generosity, leadership, skill or diligence. Such qualities are for nerds. By all means, glamorize pimps, prostitutes and those who emulate them. That is the future of America's culture.

Aware of how some of these devoted self-mutilators are going to react, I am compelled to emphasize that I do not favor any restrictions on personal behavior. If an idiot wants to get a tattoo, he or she should be free to do so. I just think responsible news media organizations should not glamorize them. What's next? Glamorizing child molesters or kluxers?

In some older cultures, influence traveled from the top down. Early Americans marveled at the intellect of people like Thomas Jefferson and James Madison and decided that education was a good thing, so they developed public school systems.

In some modern cultures, influences travel from the septic bottom up. In no time at all, we'll catch up to the Stone Age cannibals of the South Pacific.

I hope that the main body of this is a quote from the article. Paul Carpenter has done the one thing that has ruined modern journalism; he didn't do his homework. He willfully ignored the tradition of tattooing in European Royalty; he ignored how early Christians used small tattoos to identify themselves to each other, before Rome took them on as the state religion; I'd go on, but I'm working from memory here

This Paul Carpenter character seems cranky. Maybe he needs his diabetus medicine and some oatmeal to calm down.

thats not what he said.

I thought part of the fun of having tattoos was shocking the squares?

"Nonetheless, I've said a lot about both prostitution and tattoos, which, come to think of it, always seem to go together."

"No one can deny that the heaviest concentrations of tattoos occur in the lowest segments of society -- prostitutes, pimps, pugs, prison inmates, Ku Klux Klansmen and the members of street and motorcycle gangs."

"What's next? Glamorizing child molesters or kluxers?"


he was implying that we are all equated to these types of people since these people and tattoos "always seem to go to gether" it was inherent slander.

How you doin?

You know, there are a lot of actual, real hate-mongers in PA (a bunch of whom don't even make the SPLC's list) besides somebody who writes for the dinky LV rag's opinion column; reserve your hyperbole for something that actually matters.

this is an open bulletin on a website for individuals with body modifications.
this type of narrow-minded thinking propels prejudice in more aspects than just against 'people with tattoos', so I happen to think it IS important. so please, if you don't think it matters, and don't like what i post, reserve your comments for another thread. being as i'm sure you joined this site primarily to look at the naked girls, why don't you spend your time doing that instead if it better suits you than posting combative insults.

wow...

so hot.

no one is asking anyone to love anyone.
i think asking people to not hate others because of their appearance is a completely different thing. you can disagree with a person's choice to get a tattoo or piercing, but to say that celebrating tattoos as artwork is the same as celebrating child molestation or being in the KKK is completely ridiculous, am i wrong to think this?
this wasn't intended to cause a fight with members and girls. I figured if anyone would share some unity in thinking this prejudiced approach to thinking is kind of an outrage, it would be the SG community.
do i care if this asshole thinks we're awesome people for having body mods? no, not at all...but come on. it's the same principle behind hating other races or religions or homosexuals, all because you don't agree with their beliefs or customs, or appearance. I recognize this is one, sad, old, misinformed man writing for some shit online magazine in the LV, PA, but did everyone see the masses of people agreeing with his pointless dribble?? It's representative of a bigger problem. my goal is simply to perpetuate open-mindedness. that's all.

no i think he is pretty clear about what he is saying.

its obvious that the article is obnoxious for no reason and misses an opportunity to explore why tattoos are so much more popular now than they were 20 years ago. so the guy thinks tattoos are ridiculous. big deal. lots of people do. especially old ones who have never been to jail or fought in the south pacific.

I just sent that guy this email:

oh here we go... you get to CHOOSE to be tattooed or not. i hope you see what a huge difference there is.

oh come on!
i get there is a choice to be tattooed. i'm not denying that, but jesus, prejudice is prejudice people. why must you pick it apart. so it makes it okay to hate someone who got a tattoo but not because they are black? or Jewish? or gay?
hate is hate. obviously since you aren't from the LV, PA you don't understand what it's like there, but there are active KKK members...i've seen them out causing a scene at a local pizza shop. The people who think this way are representative of a bigger problem. I'm not expecting we rise up and form an army and knock down his door to demand he forgive us for having tattoos, i'm simply saying that it sucks people can be this narrow-minded....once again, as i previously stated....I thought if anyone would be able to appreciate the outlandish and bigoted remarks this man is saying, it would be SG. why am I getting a backlash for trying to support open-mindedness???? people are mad at this, seriously?? wow.

let me also remark that people responded to it when they first read the article stating that people with tattoos aren't the bottom-feeders of society that he would like the rest of the world to believe and many doctors even have them, (myself soon-to-be included) someone seriously responded with "tell me what hospital you work at so I never go there". now if you can't see why this is a problem, then i would like to know why. THAT is ignorance in its richest form.

oh well. i tried.

But what's the motivation of posting this article? To show that this mindset exists? Surely you're not going to argue that anti-body modification fervor is sweeping across the land. I'd argue that with a reality check, Mr. Carpenter represents the mind set of a dying breed. Even the most ardent social conservatives concern over tattoos ranks very low. I've seen so many crucifix tattoos on so many different types of people it borders as common anymore. There's no anti-tattoo laws in the books. There are tattoo conventions, shows on TV, magazine, an entire infrastructure. I'm sure it's a multi-million (billion even) dollar business.

Sometimes a reaction is necessary. I think that in this case it's just an example of some old guy with a relatively small mouthpiece and a kids-off-lawn! article. Maybe, in this case, a yawn and a shrug are more effective than an angry letter in the perspective of our society's general acceptance of tattoos and piercing. After all, a reaction is only going to raise this guy's profile and read count.

*Note that my post is a criticism, not an attack or an insult.

and now all the squares have them

i guess it's just infuriating when you know what the lehigh valley is like. everyone is closed-minded and the number of confederate flags on cars and lawns is unsettling. the response to the article was pretty overwhelmingly in favor of his misguided views and just a small snapshot of how life is in small-town, PA...it's surprising that people are this up in arms about body mods still is all. I mean turning away medical attention, or leaving a restaurant because your waitress has a tattoo seems a bit ridiculous. that's all.