The chances of disease transmission via tattooing done in a reputable shop by trained, licensed tattooists are so extremely low. Only a very, very few cases of Hepatitis transmission occur annually in the United States via tattooing, and to date not one single case of HIV transmission has ever been linked to a tattoo shop in the US. In contrast, both HIV and Hepatitis are regularly transmitted (with infections numbering in the thousands annually) in America's emergency rooms, dental clinics, and plasma donation centers.

The critical difference lies with public perception. We've been told all our lives how clean and safe hospitals are, but I'm telling you first-hand that hospitals are filthy, dangerous places. Because of that public perception of their cleanliness, they don't have to work as hard as a tattoo shop does to gain public acceptance. The tattoo shop has to work twice as hard to get half the recognition of cleanliness as a hospital does.

I have personally witnessed nurses, dental assistants, etc engaging in all sorts of risky behavior like dropping a latex glove on the floor and then putting it back on, handling patient charts/pens/etc with dirty (read: bloody)gloves, etc. I have seen critical tools for minor surgery kept close enough to the handwashing sink that particles from the sink could easily settle on the tools, contaminating them with whatever had just been washed off the operator's hands. I can't even begin to list all the dangerous (and easily prevented) things I've seen in medical care facilities.

Tattooing has always been the shameful, bloody scapegoat for America's disease-risky behaviors. Who remembers, for instance, Pamela Anderson claiming she was given Hepatitis via a tattoo needle shared with then-husband Tommy Lee? The tattoo shop where Lee and Anderson were tattooed is highly reputable and does not re-use needles under any circumstances. Pamela is a liar, and is simply unwilling to admit to the public that she has engaged in other risky behaviors such as promiscuous sex, IV drug use, etc. Rather than face up to her risky behaviors, she decided to attempt to take down the reputation of tattooing simply to cover up the fact that she's a drug-addled whore. If this was an isolated incident, it would mean nothing in the grand scheme of things, but it's not- it happens almost daily. All a person has to say is "Don't go to So-and-So Tattoo Parlor, my cousin's friend's brother got Hep C there", and it's accepted at face value. If someone said "Don't go to Claremore Regional Medical Care Facility, my brother's best friend's mom got AIDS there", people would say "come on, are you sure? Really? Where'd you hear that?" But if it's a tattoo shop, well, you know how dirty those places are... right? (Wrong.)

Modern tattoo shops are incredibly concerned with preventing the transmission of disease. This is not just because of the damage it would do to that one particular shop's business, but because most professional tattooists are extremely concerned with how the public views us as an industry, especially on a medical level. Our track record over the last twenty to thirty years is excellent in regards to disease prevention... we almost universally don't allow diseases to spread through our businesses. It's very, very important to us to be safe and clean. That's why we spore-test our autoclaves as often as once a week while hospitals might do it once a year. That's why we completely disinfect our work stations in-between clients, while hospitals might just wipe the room down with a bleach-and-water solution, if it's not too busy. We take these extra steps because the reputation of our entire industry rides on it.

Frank's back from Joplin again! And oh what an interesting trip it was. 250 miles, 2 traffic tickets/one "warning" ticket, many hamburgers and french fries, and a Black Panther tattoo on the stomach of a skinhead who lost a bet... mwahaha. Pictures? Yes, we've got those.

See, what he did is, he bet me he could drink a gallon of milk in an hour. If he won, he'd get any tattoo he wanted- but if he lost, he had to get whatever tattoo I wanted to put on him.



After a couple days of considering how best to humiliate this guy, I settled on this panther head surrounded by "black power!" At least that's what I stencilled on him. I didn't actually tattoo the lettering, I only wanted to embarass him- not get him killed.



So here's the finished product! Y'all email me and let me know what you think of it.

FINALLY! VICTORY!!!!!!!!!!

After a long, well-fought battle, tattooing finally became legal again in Oklahoma for the first time since it was outlawed in 1963.

This is a great day for Oklahoma tattooists and tattoo enthusiasts.

I can't possibly explain how happy I am right now.



Okla. Last State to Legalize Tattoos


The Associated Press
May 10, 2006 4:35 PM
OKLAHOMA CITY - Oklahoma became the last state to make tattoos legal when the governor signed legislation Wednesday to license and regulate tattoo artists and parlors.

The measure ends a ban on tattooing that had been in effect since 1963. The new law takes effect Nov. 1.

"Regardless of one's personal views about tattoos, the plain fact is that tattooing is prevalent," Gov. Brad Henry said.

The legislation calls for sanitation and health guidelines for tattoo artists and parlors and periodic inspections by the state Health Department. Previous attempts to lift the ban over the past decade were fought on health as well as moral grounds.

The Health Department endorsed the measure after expressing concern about an increase in hepatitis infections related to unsanitary tattooing practices.

"It is important that we do what we can to make sure those who get a tattoo don't also end up contracting a disease such as HIV or hepatitis B or C," Henry said.

The measure makes it illegal to tattoo anyone younger than 18.

Frank's going back up to Joplin this coming weekend to help out at Ink-A-Tak while Dale, the owner of Ink-A-Tak, is recovering from a recent medical problem.

If you were planning to get tattooed by Frank this weekend, get ahold of him at the shop (282-TATU) before Thursday night. If you don't specifically need to have Frank do your tattoo, Lizzie is great and can take care of whatever you need. She'll be at the shop all weekend.

Frank has returned from his guest spot in Joplin, and has a couple openings this week for tattoos. Come on down and check out the shop, everyone is welcome!

Frank will be doing a guest spot at Ink-A-Tak Tattoo in Joplin, Missouri this week. If you're in the Joplin area and want a great tattoo, Ink-A-Tak is in the Yellow Pages.

Hope to see you there!

In the meantime, feel free to drop in and see Lizzie- she does awesome work and is super-friendly.