Tattoos and piercings...Fad or here to stay?

Many people feel that tattoos and piercings are only a fad of our generation or generation X. To me it is a way of self expression and individuality. They have been around for for thousands of years so it is hard to say that our generation is responsible for this so called "fad". As one DePaul student told me, whom would like to remain anonymous, "many people believe that tattoos and piercings are a fad, but if they are, then how have they been around for so long?" "As a person who has a few tattoos and piercings, i can tell you that each one of my tattoos have a meaning behind them." Of course there are people who only get tattoos or piercings to follow the "fad" portrayed in the media everyday, but there are still many people out there who do it for a purpose, whether it be something meaningful in their lives, to maintain their sense of individuality, or just because they think it would look good. For myself, i cannot say that i got my lip pierced because something meaningful happened in my life, but because i like the way it looks. I have always wanted it and one day just went and did it and now i love it. It has set me apart from many people, like my hockey team, where you would not see many people with a piercing. Although, there are a few guys with some tattoos that ranging from tributes to their school and team to tattoos that represent their last names. In the end, there are many different reasons for getting tattoos and piercings, but i think that not one of them have made them a fad among our generation.