When I was younger, I wanted to have a tattoo because I liked drawing on my skin with a pen and they looked cool. But now that I think about it, I only wanted a tattoo because I was in my rebellious teen phase, I wanted to be different and mostly, I wanted to piss off my mom because she's super religious and like some of you already mentioned, thinks only thugs and murderers have tattoos. Nowadays, I'm not that big on having a tattoo. But if I ever did get one, I'd get it for the symbolism more than anything else. Like if I had a personal victory in my life (e.g. beating cancer) and wanted a constant reminder (e.g. a positive quotation or picture symbolising my personal victory), then a tattoo would be great for that purpose.
But it is funny that there is still so much of a stigma with getting a tattoo, even though they have been widely accepted into our modern culture. I taught English in South Korea for two years and knew an American teacher there who had a lot of tattoos on his body. But whenever he had to go teach in a classroom, he had to cover up his tattoos with a long-sleeved dress shirt because his employers didn't deem it appropriate. And I think it's because tattoos are viewed as something not fitting for the workplace and could be construed as unprofessional and might make you seem like you're a social deviant, even if you're not. It really depends on the country you're living in and how traditional their viewpoints are about your public appearance. I guess it's hard to let go of preconceived notions when it comes to tattoos simply because of their origins and the reasons people used to wear them before. But in my opinion, if you have a tattoo, I don't think you and your personality should be judged because of it. Everyone gets tattoos for different reasons and it's certainly not up to me to judge them or put my prejudices on their shoulders.