Tattoos: not something I would do. Even when I thought it was kind of neat, I couldn’t think of anything that I liked so much I’d want it on my body for the rest of my life. I don’t find them attractive, but I’m not going to get all upset about it.
Body piercing: another thing I once thought was kind of neat (in moderation) and now find quite unattractive. I had 2 and 3 holes in my ears, and let those go out of laziness. I wouldn’t do anyplace else.
Plastic surgery: As everyone else has already said, it’s fine for ‘needful’-type things. But I don’t really think much of it for cosmetic purposes, and from my personal feminist POV wish people wouldn’t do things to themselves in the name of beauty. I’m always kind of disappointed in TV women who get facelifts, for example, and generally they look worse to me. If people really want to get boob jobs or whatever, that’s fine, but I’m not going to be particularly enthusiastic about it, and I worry about the cumulative effect.
I don’t “get” tattoos, or particularly body piercings. I don’t understand what kind of statement people are trying to make by adding bits of metal to their bodies. I mean, pieced earrings, on women are a custom that has gone on for ages. On men, that’s something that bypasses me altogether. I’m old enough to have come from a time and place when straight men didn’t wear facial jewellery. To do so would have been an invitation to public ridicule and worse. As for other metal bits, well… I used to work with somebody who had earrings, a nose ring and another one sticking out of his eyebrow. Sometimes he’e wear a chain between them. It seemed to be a weird mixture of “Hey, look at me!” and “What the hell are you looking at?” But he couldn’t understand why nobody would take him seriously. I think what I don’t get is that depth of vanity, or whatever it is. In any case, it’s none of my business what people do. If they’re happy, great.
Regarding plastic surgery, if you have something about your face that, if changed, could make you believe that you look nicer and give you less paranoia about being ugly, go for it. Self-esteem is a powerful thing. But for anybody to go for the Mary Tyler Moore look is completely beyond my ken.
This is interesting. I agree that it’s unrealistic to think that lipo will give someone Carmen Electra’s figure. But I understand how it might make it easier for someone to continue a commitment to exercise, healthier eating, etc.
Even if one exercises and eats appropriately, it can take a long time to have anything to show for it. The body has a remarkable ability to keep that extra weight there, and it’s frustrating. If lipo can help someone get there quickly, then that person has a powerful incentive to stay there with diet and exercise. Of course, that person has to have realistic expectations of just what the surgery can do for them, and that person has to have a realistic understanding of the kind of diet and exercise required to maintain their weight and shape after surgery. For that person, lipo can be an appropriate form of body modification.
Tattoos: I have one myself, and am getting another in a week for my birthday, so obviously I have no problem with them. I don’t like super-visible ones, like on the hands or face, and I’m not a big fan of tattoos done so densely they look like clothes (e.g. sleeves), but I think a non-cliched tattoo in just the right position can make someone look a lot more attractive.
Piercings: I only have the earlobes done–granted, each is pierced three times but I usually don’t wear jewelry at all. I don’t like anything other than earlobe piercings on an aesthetic level, but I’d not not-date someone or be friends with someone because of it (unless it was a genital piercing, sorry but I find those totally nasty). I don’t think I’m going to get anything else pierced, though.
Plastic surgery: I have the biggest problem with this. IMO, most people look worse after plastic surgery (save people who are deformed or disfigured), and the mere fact that they went through it at all makes me think they are shallow and stupid. Shallow, because they spent thousands of dollars just to make their face fractionally more attractive; and stupid, because surgery (unlike tattoos and all but the most complicated piercings) is dangerous. People have DIED during plastic surgery! To me, that reckless endangerment of one’s health and the frittering away of money is wrong, and I doubt I could date someone or possibly even be friends with them if I knew they’d done it. Besides, I don’t really go in for Hollywood beauty, I like people whose faces are a little “off.” Plastic surgery always seems a little obvious to me, I can tell when people have had it done. But it’s not like I think it should be illegal or anything.
I’m not a fan of any of the above, actually. I haven’t got pierced ears (or anything else) - I think it’s vaguely weird to punch holes in oneself and hang things off of 'em. I knew I wasn’t cut out for tattoos when I scrubbed a henna off my hand after about two weeks, having gotten tired of it; I think most tattoos look pretty tacky. (I also couldn’t imagine wanting any particular picture on my body forever. I can’t even manage to come up with an interestingly personalized username!) Plastic surgery is a little different - I think it’s way overused, but if someone really, truly can’t deal with a particular feature they were born with, I could understand wanting to change it.
I believe elective plastic surgery is truly obscene. I see the prelevant casualness of it in American society and it makes me highly uncomfortable. IMHO, a sign of a “mentally ill society”. I truly feel sorry for people that conform their bodies through dangerous and unnecessary surgery. How do you get to that point? Makes me sad.
I am also highly aware of anything artificial about the actual physiological human form. I often find the end results of plastic surgery decidedly weird and unappealing aesthetically. People always just look off and altered, even in the cases of subtle surgery. I believe natural symmetry is the best.
You know, if someone had already lost some weight by exercising and eating healthy but plateaued and felt they needed to extra motivation, I might buy this argument. (although, I still think it’s silly to risk life threatening surgery for this and lipo is one of the more dangerous surgeries) But the women I see on the shows (which are a guilty fascination with me so I watch far too many) usually aren’t eating healthy or exercising at all and seem to think that lipo will miraculously give them motivation (I get the impression they think that with “motivation”, it’s suddenly easy to diet).
I’m cool with all of it. I don’t personally find piercings aesthetically pleasing, but whatever people want to do to their bodies is their own business.
People tend to paint all people with tattoos with a broad brush, and the same goes for plastic surgery. It’s a highly personal thing, and people do it for many different reasons.
I have tattoos, and I’ve had plastic surgery. I’m very happy with all of it. It always strikes me as strange that someone else would have a problem with what I’ve chosen to do to my own body.
For me: No, No and only if I got disfigured or something.
For anyone else: Whatever floats your boat.
I will very strongly caution my children against all of that stuff. By the time they’re old enough, I’m sure it will be gauche and passe, so perhaps I won’t need to.
Tattoos can be good and bad. I don’t think I’d ever get one cause I’d change my mind about what I wanted the next day but as long as it’s not overdone a tattoo can turn a plain looking person into an interesting looking one – there’s a girl started work where I am has some sort of heiroglyph on the back of her neck and I have to admit I’m intrigued despite myself.
I’ve also got a bit of a fascination with sleeves though – I’ve got pocmarked shoulders of all things that although no-one but me notices still get me daydreaming about getting tattoos like the bassist in RATM/Audioslave to cover 'em up.
Plastic surgery is too individualised for me to have a blanket opinion on.
Piercings, on the other hand really wig me out. Although I’m not that much of a worrier, I can’t help but think of what would happen if a piercing was pulled out. Even things like my gf’s preference for your basic dangly earrings make me uncomfortable. People with faces full of metal just look like mincemeat waiting to happen to me.
A few tats is cool if they’re good quality, but not over done. (I’m thinking of getting my first soon)
piercings done right are sexy.
cosmetic only for medical reasons or gross deformities. Actually I guess the only thing I have a problem with is implants, I can’t quite figure out why though.
Piercings: Also yuck, but at least they can heal up again, right?
Plastic surgery: I thought I wanted it all my life, but now that I’m in a position to actually go ahead with it, I find I have very serious reservations. I’m not prepared to say I will never do it, either. I struggle.
I feel that everyone should do what they want withy their body. That does not mean that I will find it attractive. But I have no problem with any of it.
FTR, I’ve had my ears and tongue pierced (removed the tongue piercing a while back), no tattoos, had a bump removed from my nose and had some red capillaries on my face cauterized.
My first thought was, “Don’t you dare!” I’m SO glad you don’t feel the need to do that- you’re incredibly hot as you are. Your mom’s an idiot for suggesting that you should do it, and I mean that in the nicest possible manner.
Besides, I always thought that we should get our confidence from alcohol.
What?
I kinda like 'em. I’d kinda like to have one. The permanence of a tattoo makes me nervous- I’d really want to have one I know I won’t regret later on.
I’ve got a pierced ear. Piercings in other places, while not for me, looks just fine on other people (as long as it’s not distracting- piercings should be there to add to the attractiveness of the wearer- the wearer shouldn’t exist to improve the attractiveness of the jewelry).
Unless it’s to correct some horrible disaster, I think it’s generally unnecessary. A friend of mine has had breast implants- and, while they’re very nice, she’d still be hot without 'em. Years ago, I kinda wanted rhinoplasty to correct my nose (which apparently healed, twisted just a bit, from being broken)- but it’s just not that big a deal to me. I’ve never met anyone about whom I thought, “They need plastic surgery”.
And here we have Adam, modelling a fig leaf as part of our new Fall line. {Adam struts, pouts, and poses in a contra posto slouch, to the strains of “I’m too sexy for my leaf.”}
I like most tattoos, but I don’t see the point of some of the “standard” ones (i.e. kanji characters, etc) and I usually don’t like too many tattoos crammed together or really big elaborate tattoos - I like simplicity. I have one tattoo myself.
Ear piercings, I hardly notice. I think girls with nostril piercings are really sexy. Other piercings; I think it depends on the person carrying them
I don’t know. To correct obvious scars/flaws/whatever, I’m OK with that. I’m not so sure about nose or boob jobs for example - mostly because it smells of insecurity/fitting in with an existing model of beauty (I think that’s been mentioned before in this thread).
People can do what they want, of course, but I think almost all tattoos look dumb and would always prefer bare flesh to the ornamentation. Ditto piercings–ears are fine but just about everything else (face or body) falls into the Unattractive area for me (I’ve only seen one belly piercing that looked genuinely hot).
I’m terrible at noticing plastic surgery (except for the most egregious examples), but the visual attractiveness of an augmentation can be offset if it clearly doesn’t “feel” natural. Outside of reconstructive procedures, I consider it all vanity-driven and am not a fan.
