Who says you have to conform? All I ask when i go into a bank or building society is someone who is well informed and polite and friendly, whether they are wearing a suit or not is irrelevant. I really could not care less whether or not they have piercings or tattoo's, what i do care about is whether or not they know what they are talking about. Usually not i find. Which is why i use internet banking i guess. For everything else, i have a financial advisor, yes he wears a suit but that is his choice, i certainly don't wear one when i go to see him. Spent friday morning with him, I was wearing jeans and t-shirt and we have very informal meetings. Mortgages, if i wanted one i would use a broker, again very informal. My son has a tattoo on his upper arm and shoulder (tribal) personally i think it is lovely. wouldn't want it myself though. He also has 2 eyebrow piercings, a lip piercing, a tongue piercing and big holes in his ears and works in an office. Piercings and dreads dont have to go hand in hand. his haircut is quite short.
I do have to admit to one prejudice i can't tolerate tw@ts doesn't matter what age colour or how many holes they have or what they are wearing, and they are only discernable once they open their mouths.

Good trouble - that is the attitude I think everyone should have

And is your son single??

If someone wants to be non conformist then that is their choice. If what someone else thinks about them bothers them why be non conformist?

I have nothing against tattoos and piercings ...I have both but I don't expect everyone else to like them OR to agree with them . They are MY choice and I have to live with both them and the opinions of other people

If we were ALL non conformist to the nth degree, the person with brown hair and no tattoos or piercings would be the none conformist LOL

Single as in not married, yeah but he is only 18, give him a chance

oh, 18's ok, you should get him on dogweb

Mel - the angle I am more looking at is the fact that people are expected to cover up/tone down to fit into society/a career.

I have lots of thoughts on individuality and conforming, and I find alot of people are only individual to conform! lol

I don't think there are many 'true' individuals in this world. It is far too easy to be affected by the people and media around you. I am hopelessly non-individual. Or maybe I AM individual, as people often expect one thing from me and I am another? I certainly don't follow a crowd. But I am not out to be different. I am just trying to be me (or find me?).

Hmmmmm. well if i please myself, i am guaranteed to make at least one person happy, and as long as i cause no harm to others why should they think their opinion is welcome.?

Ok I have 3 tattoos and have had numerous piercings over the years.... mostly facial ..eyebrows,nose, both sides at once, tongue.. lots in both ears, bellybutton x2
My teenage years were spent around bikers, punks, hippies etc and quite honestly I don't really notice "those" sort of people, tattoos and peircings don't seem particularly unconventional to me.. I would be surprised if I saw someone like that serving me in a bank, just because you NEVER see any one "unusual" in those type of jobs.. see now I am stereotyping...
I do think when people go down the road of multiple visible tattoos & peircings, it is with the knowledge that it will send out a particular message to people, a message that they are choosing to send... I don't think that disablity, colour etc are the same thing at all .. people with extreme body art have chosen that and therefore do NOT have to look that way...colour, disability is not chosen.. you can remove peircings and cover up tattoos..you cannot become able bodied or a different colour....
Personally I really couldn't care less who does what as long as they do it to the best of their ability and are polite to me whilst they do it

Oh and I am guilty of stereotyping too the baseball cap mafia... that whole youth culture of baseball caps and bad attitudes!
Rachel

i have 7 tattoos and a earring when i was nurseing some people would comment on the ones you can see but i would say does it afect the care i give or change who i am and was always told no i have been sent home from some jobs cos i would not take my earring out im not likeing the way people are put in groups like chav boy raser goth ect but i do feel that some do act on the name like hoddies ect

I certainly don't have a lack of respect for my body!

I've had 20 piercings, and currently got 3 tattoos.

When I went for my first wedding dress fitting, the lady asked how I was going to cover my tattoo up (upper half of my back).
My Mum looked agahst, and said why would I cover it up, it's a part of me!

I used to work in a Charity Shop, and the number of older people who questioned my facial piercings - and loved them! - was amazing.

My OH has tattoos and piercings too. He certainly doesn't lack respect for his body either!


Don't care who serves me in a shop/bank/market stall/doctors etc etc - as long as they are polite.


When I had cancer, and lost all my hair - I got less respect from people, as they could see my multiple ear piercings, and kept asking why I wanted them, and why I shaved my head. Was I 'punk'? Girls shouldn't shave their head...etc etc etc

Hevvur that is truley awful

I just want to clear up what I meant in my first post as some of you seem to have taken it up wrong. I certainly am not saying a disability is like choosing to have tattos, dreadlocks, piercings, smelly clothes etc etc. My point was our society still discriminates against people who are different in ways they cannot control; race, sex, gender etc etc. So how on earth are we ever truley going to accept people who choose to be different?