Illinois governor Rod Blagojevich recently vetoed a bill which would have dropped Illinois’ legal tattoo age from 21 down to 18.

What did the governor have to say about this?

“As a parent, I don’t want my daughters to rush to get tattoos on their 18th birthdays. At that age, most kids are still in high school and don’t have the judgment or perspective to decide on something as permanent as tattooing your skin,” said Gov. Blagojevich. “Teenagers may not realize getting a tattoo is a decision they’ll live with, and potentially regret, for the rest of their lives. That’s why I refuse to support legislation that allows teenager to get tattoos.”

Interesting, what about all the people between the ages of 18 and 20 who voted for Governor Blagojevich? Perhaps the governor would like to raise the voting age as well. After all, the decisions governors make have a lasting impact on their states educational and economic future. Are 18 year olds really ready to make those kind of decisions?

Sometimes people get tattoos that they regret. If you have your ex’s name tattooed in your back you are going to have to foot your own bill. If you live in Sacromento and have gang tattoos a new program might be able to help you out.

According to the Contra Costa Times there is a long tattoo removal waiting list.

Here is an interesting story I picked up over at Weblogs Inc’s AdJab. Apparently some sport stars have been sued by their tattoo artists when their tats were shown on commercials. First it was Rasheed Wallace now it is David Beckham who is running into problems.

The fact is, the tattoo artist may be right. An artist or writer automaticly owns the rights to his work upon creation, unless they sign the copyrights over in a contract.

The Houton Chronicle has an article about a new policy effecting Houston police officers. Strict new rules will require laser tattoo removal or permanent coverup when the cops are on the job. Only undercover police officers won’t be affected.

That means officers with tattoos on their forearms must wear long sleeves year-round or have the artwork removed by a laser — an expensive and time-consuming procedure. Likewise, bicycle patrol officers with tattoos on their lower legs will have to wear long pants in the summer if they don’t wish to permanently erase the ink from their skin.

Think cops don’t have lots of tattoos? One in this article had 17.

Ironicly, there is a program to help former gang members get their gang tattoos laser removed. Police officers have to pay out of their own pocket.