There is a plethora of generational differences in our society…music, movies, foods, and more. My generation was neither organic, vegan, nor gluten-free. Our music wasn’t amped. Today most of us have mastered email and I-Phones (I’m still working on Tik-Tok). But one of the most difficult trends to understand is the exploding craze to ornament one’s body with tattoos.
Body art isn’t new. People have been using their bodies as canvasses since prehistoric times. Neolithic men and women, ancient Egyptians, and societies as far apart as Africa and Scandinavia have marked arms and legs for religious reasons, love, and punishment. Depictions are geometric, pictorial, and messages. Some praise God; some laud the devil. Some are small…cute and sexy, perhaps a small rose or a heart on the shoulder. Some are huge, covering significant parts of the body.
In 1951, science fiction writer, Ray Bradbury, published The Illustrated Man, the story of a man whose entire body was tattooed with story panels.
The general population didn’t get into tattooing until the past decade. Its popularity was limited mostly to bikers, convicts, and similar sub-cultures. What adorned your body helped define you as hard core…macho, not to be messed with.
But today that’s all changed. Along with nose, lip and belly rings, tattoos for Gen X, Y, and Z, and Goths have become de rigueur. Even employers, historically opposed to visible markings, have become more accepting.
In the past dozen years American body art spending has increased 30% to more than $1 ½ billion. That’s a “b”! What is interesting is that during the same period credit card debt spiraled to over $1 trillion. 14 million men and women owe more than $10,000. and struggle to pay even the minimum monthly amount. Many of those in college, or recent graduates, are unable to make payments on their student loans.
Is there a correlation? Maybe! Probably! Gen Y, Millennials, for example, those born between 1981-1995, owe nearly $30,000 in non-mortgage debt…credit cards, student loans, etc. They are also the generation most addicted to body art…nearly half of them, both male and female, have one or more tattoos.
And tattoos aren’t cheap…they range from $100 to $1,000’s and the cost of the full body art shown below will exceed most Gen Y’s annual income.
So, if you’re trying to decide whether to make a credit card payment, bring down your student loan balance, or add a new design to your already lovely body, take a moment before deciding.
Meanwhile, I’m going to use my next two social security checks to tattoo a butterfly on my tush. Sadly, it will likely go unseen.