I learned a great many things about tattooing during my search. The first I will discuss are general facts about tattooing. �Tattooing is the art of marking the skin with indelible patterns, pictures, or legends by making pricks and inserting colored ink .� The majority of the population today have three views on tattooing- they hate tattoos, love them, or are fascinated with them but would never get one. Tattoos can represent religion, politics, history, philosophy, individuality, current fashion, social status, or a rite of passage. Men are said to get tattoos to show them to others, and women get tattoos simply for the sake of decorating their bodies.

According to Danielle Oberosler, people get tattooed for a more complex reason. She feels that it is because people have lost faith in our language and our other systems of knowledge. They are disappointed in modern intellectuals and have turned to �unacceptable, non mainstream� magical expression. Tattoos also have medical purposes. They can be used as permanent make-up and to cover up scars during cosmetic surgery. 

Society views tattooed people differently. They associate tattoos with prisoners, ex-cons, circus people, bikers, and gang members. Sometimes this actually is this case. Beth Wilkinson states that �60% of all inmates in the country have tattoos or other markings.� Most gang members and bikers are tattooed. They use tattooing as part of their initiation rites. Some gang members sport tattooed tear drops near their eyes or spider webs on their elbows. Webs, dots, crosses, and �X�s� between the thumb and 
forefinger are usual gang affiliated tattoos. 

Here are a few surprising facts about tattooing. Women make up 50% of the world's professional tattooists today. They used to be banned from even going inside the parlors. It is impossible to tattoo hair, teeth, or nails because of their quick growth rates. An average tattoo artist will charge $100 per hour for your tattoo, give or take a few dollars. There is no federal legislation regarding tattooing- laws are up to the states themselves. Tattooing is banned in Vermont, South Carolina, Oklahoma, and Massachusetts.