Yes, that is interesting, but I doubt today’s tat-mania has as much to do with tribal tattooing of the past as with generational identity, like long hair and bellbottoms did for my generation.

There’s an age at which developmental psychology urges us to demonstrate a separation from parental oversight, so each generation finds something that will make the previous generation queasy, and it goes viral.

In that sense, ink is a unifying generational identity marker rather than a political tribal display. You can be sure that the children of the tatted generation will find a completely different way to signal their coming of age, no matter how politically fragmented we continue to become.

Political tribalism and mass narcissism cycles run on larger timescales than just a single generation. They will continue to worsen until there is a major collapse of the old order, and a realignment of moral and political values. Meanwhile hipster beards and colorful sleeves will have become as passé as the 90s obligatory shaved-head-with-Willisonian-soul-patch combo is to the current generation.

I'm going to sound really annoying and out of place here, but please answer my question ASAP.

Thanks for this posting. You have just taught me something.

I don't have any tattoos, and would never consider getting one, but I consider them another form of self expression.

I try not to judge people based on their superficial adornments and focus more on who they are as people.

As far as narcissists go, I don't believe Trump has any tattoos!

I have no idea what the connection between narcissism and tattoos is, that sounds like lazy social engineering to me.

As far as tribalism goes, not a lot of people get the same tattoo as a form of identity like they used to. Not to say it doesn't happen because gang symbols are still common in prisons across the world.

However many people get tattoos as a means of expressing their individuality, to say "I'm not a part of your machine"