"Play" tattoos for little kids a gateway to the real thing?

I don't like the ideas of making tattoos cool, because I think real tattoos are a really bad idea and hate how they've permeated youth culture today. But, I think giving them to kids is probably the best way of making them not cool. If they were something that was cool when you were 9 you have a long time to grow out of it. Like a vaccine, a non-viable version of a real virus, let them get it when young and you don't have to worry about it later....

" By the time, the child is of legal age, I don't think they will consider the coolness of the temporary tattoo they got at a carnival."

ha! Thanks for this reality check. I didn't think of it that way---by the time my son is old enough to be able to decide if he wants a tattoo, he will have long-forgotten about the tattoo he got at a preschool party when he was 2, and the "coolness factor" would have been worn off even longer.

I don't think that temporary tattoos are a gateway to obtaining permanent ink. I think they are completely innocent and almost in essence, a toy.

If you think about it, you could ask this question about any toy that is offered to children: guns, swords, video games, etc. Yes, there are a select few that are disturbed by video games and toys but the majority of society see it as just that, toys. Something to learn from and be entertained by.

Do little girls look at a Barbie Doll and want to be like one? Sure! The idea of flawlessness is certainly idealistic but understandably, not obtainable. Although, I still day dream about the Ken Doll.

Since the legal age to consider a tattoo is 18 years old, I think parents have plenty of time to speak to their children about the permanency of tattoos but after all, once a child is grown up and has a mind of their own, the possibility to there. By the time, the child is of legal age, I don't think they will consider the coolness of the temporary tattoo they got at a carnival.