The world's most unsettling tattoo?

[luckycanuck]

I went out for a run this morning, intending to stop at the gym on my way to Manly for a total of about 28km.  It was hot enough and the sun was very strong, so I decided that risking sunburn and heatstroke in 30+ degrees (90F) wasn't a good idea.  I had a decent workout and filled up my water bottles for the run home, going the long way around via the plateau for a total of about 15km.  I felt quite exhausted by the end and I still feel worn out now.

Afterwards I had a swim at the beach.  The tide was very low but there were a few good sized waves, some of which could be bodysurfed.  It was wonderfully warm.  Like getting into a big salty bath.

While I was at the gym, I saw a very unsettling tattoo.  Now I know many people (like minxyminou) are big fans of tattoos, and have advised me on what would look good on me if I was ever to get one.  I can honestly say that with the tattoo I saw on a guy at the gym, I wouldn't have needed any advice that it was a horrible tattoo.

Guess what it was.  Go on, guess.  I'll wait.

Want to know what it was?  It wasn't just embarassing like someone who has no appreciation of asian culture getting a Chinese tattoo that they think means "peace" but actually means "my mother is a diseased whore."  It also wasn't merely self-congratulatory or egomaniacal or lame song lyrics.

No, this muscular guy at the gym had "Waffen SS" tattooed on his arm.  "Waffen" was written in a gothic script, and the SS bit was the telltale double lightning bolts.  There, doing weights in the gym, was a tribute to the military wing of the Nazi SS.

I know there are people who even now think the Nazis were on to something, but it was still a shock to see someone who felt strongly enough about it to have the name of the a band of racist fanatics permanently etched on their skin.  I wondered if it was something he simply thought looked cool, but the Waffen SS is relatively obscure and this tattoo was quite specific.  It may not be as shocking as getting a swastika tattoo and certainly wouldn't make many waves amongst the legions of people who have never heard of the Waffen SS but are certainly aware of the infamy that has been rightfully earned by Hitler's fascist legions.  I am pretty sure anyone who would get that tattoo would know what it was.

I didn't say anything.  Part of me wanted to shout "hey everyone, this asshole is a Nazi prick who is openly displaying a tribute to a political army within the Third Reich" but what would be the point in that?

If only I could have come up with something devastatingly clever when he asked if I was done with some weights.

Comments

[minxyminou.livejournal.com]

Was he an skinhead?

[luckycanuck.livejournal.com]

We pretty much had the same haircut. I mean, going strictly on hair length, I'm practically a skinhead. Of course, I am devoid of Nazi tattoos.

[contaminatedsun.livejournal.com]

What. The. Fuck.

[luckycanuck.livejournal.com]

It's so weirdly specific. It almost makes the whole thing more disturbing.

[yurusumaji.livejournal.com]

Wow.
Got to love the morally depraved.

[luckycanuck.livejournal.com]

I can't find any way to explain it other than it's an homage to the Nazis, and I really want it to be something else.

[werz-waldeau.livejournal.com]

In the US, I would assume it was a prison tat, but I'm not sure that's a valid assumption in your neighborhood.

[luckycanuck.livejournal.com]

He had other tattoos but nothing that was evidently Nazi. In fact I couldn't tell what any of them were, and the Waffen SS tattoo was hard enough to read to slip under the radar of most people, but not those with an MA in 20th century political history.

Whatever it was, I cannot imagine it's an accident.

[msservalan.livejournal.com]

yeah - ss tattoos are sadly not as uncommon as you'd think - but at least it makes it easier to identify the people who have them... blergh

[luckycanuck.livejournal.com]

The thing is, I think most people wouldn't have identified it. Even I kept thinking "there must be some other explanation."

Mitzi adds ...

[(Anonymous)]

The dickhead clearly wanted to impress his ageing lover David Irving.

Re: Mitzi adds ...

[luckycanuck.livejournal.com]

I can't quite work out whether it's simply offensive, or more pathetic.