73 thoughts on “Rules of Life”

  4. yeah jae you’re right it actually does say respect! at first i read something something PIPS and i thought whaaaa?
    but i actually don’t get the connection ot the words and the fingers or is that just random?
    pj

  10. Looks like respect to me. And I so agree, Love and Respect yes…power and money not so much. I wonder what his secret to those long nails are.

  11. Long nails on men are totally the style these days–it’s a pimp-culture thing, and it signifies, basically, that the wearer performs no useful work. Kinda like pale skin on Victorian ladies.

  12. Back in the day nails on men meant they were coke dealers. That was a decade ago so I’m sure it means something different now…

  13. Mr. C needs to take that stick out of his ass.

    And I agree with Jennifer!

  21. WHOA!!!!! LOL!
    Mr.C, an ENTIRE race of people ruined your family’s lives?? SHITTY, DUDE!!! You have SUCH a good excuse to be a dick hole on the internet!
    An entire race… most of your family. Yeah wow. That sucks.
    LOL! What a piece of shit.

  23. Sorry Mr.C, I was thrown off by the fact that your IAM is Mr. C. Let’s not get all caps locky on me, here.

    I’m sorry that your family was screwed over by some people– however they didn’t screw you over because they were black. They screwed you over because they were crappy people, and that doesn’t mean that all blacks are immoral and hurtful.
    You cannot assume that individuals speak for their entire race, bigot.

  24. Sorry Mr.C, I was thrown off by the fact that your IAM is Mr. C. Let’s not get all caps locky on me, here.

    I’m sorry that your family was screwed over by some people– however they didn’t screw you over because they were black. They screwed you over because they were crappy people, and that doesn’t mean that all blacks are immoral and hurtful.
    You cannot assume that individuals speak for their entire race, bigot.

  26. When Shannon was still around comments such as Mr.C’s would never have been allowed. It used to be about respect; a savehaven for likeminds. Now it appears to have become just another blog.. I sure do hope this will change.

  27. Aaah – OK – I was thinking the index finger began with a P 🙂

    This is no place for stupidity. Any other comments regarding race, I’m going to delete.

  29. its respect. do you folks realize your promoting the rules of the gang life with this? (not just life)way to go modblog….
    bring back Shannon!

  31. fluffenutter/Demonic Porn Pig – Firstly, no I didn’t realise I was promoting the rules of the gang life.

    Secondly, I wasn’t around when these comments were made, I was on my way home from work.

    Are you saying ModBlog has changed hugely over the past couple of weeks, if so, how? If I’m doing something wrong I’d honestly like to know what it is.

  34. sorry RooRaaah, my comment was not ness meant for you personally. i think i would like you alot in person. so please dont take it as a jab at you.
    & no im not trying to comment on BME’s decline, im just shocked to see the Laws of the LK, GD, VL, etc, etc (not sure exactly which gang) being posted on modblog as ‘rules of life’!!

  35. although now that i think about it…. it is HILLARIOUS that you thought “respect” might be “poser”.
    very funny, but be careful Roo. there are plenty of folks who take that stuff VERY seriously.

  36. Rose – Thanks, I’m learning!

    fluffenutter – I didn’t take it personally at all, really. But obviously I don’t want to rub people up the wrong way and this is a pretty steep learning curve for me. The “poser” comment was because he’s posing for the camera.
    Let this be the end of the silliness, thanks guys.

  37. Wait, because Roo is posting blacks and other ethnicicties he’s promoting gang life?

    Wtf, that makes sense *sarcasm*.
    I know Roo said “Don’t make any racial comments, they’ll be deleted” but I have to say, if “niggers” ruined your family, with the ignorance you spout, I am SURE they deserved it.

    Some people obviously need bleach in their gene pool.

  38. Wait, in fact, this is pissing me off more, I need to stop reading.

    So, because a young man has these printed on his fingers, and is black he is automatically in some gang? Oh my God, get the fuck off of it. I am assuming you also assume people with the original swastikas (Buddist symbols) who are white are also nazis?

    Way to go for racial stereotying! HURRAH!
    :/

  40. Can someone find a reference to show that “Power, Money, Love, Respect” is a gang tattoo?

    It seems more like an idiot lumping this guy into the “everyone with tattoos is in a gang/prison”. I know I got my neck tattoos when I was in a gang but come on.. We really liked picking flowers.

  41. Why are ghetto tattoos always so bad? I live in Bklyn and I see some of the worst, most poorly executed tattoos ever.

  42. Sara, you have no clue. i noted that they were gang related based on the location and order on the fingers. so, fuck you!

    My observation had nothing to do with the guy’s race. Honestly, i have no idea what race he is and i couldn’t care less. Although, depending on the gang he is most likely latino or black…gangs are often VERY racist about who can apply for membership.

    im no racist, although i will admit that when i see white folks wearing swastikas i expect them to be scum and i treat them as such until they can prove otherwise! i still cant believe that the body mod culture seems to support the wearing/tattooing of swastikas. Yes, i know it has an older, deeper meaning. but still WTF?!? how many more people needed to die for those folks to take it seriously and respect those who were murdered in the holocaust?!? it aint “COOL”, assholes!

    BTW, go Lexi….!!

  43. Only if they tilt it like the nazis did.. and maybe decorate it with eagles and such. but you never know might be a great guy/girl, we shouldn’t ever judge anything..

    sorry, didn’t make that clear – *sarcasm*

    this guy seems like a dick. money and power. i know the titles are tongue in cheek but this is a retarded post, in fact stupid.

  44. fluffenutter – Erm, surely the only way to “reclaim” the Swastika is to take it out for the hands of recent history and the people who promote it as a symbol of hate, and thrust it into the mainstream as something that means happiness and peace?

    Tucking it away where nobody can see it will only add to the feeling (amongst people) that it’s all about being a racist.

  45. Roo you are doing a fantastic job. It seems some people expect you to be chained to your desk.

  46. Okay, fluffernutter, so you are saying you 100% know this man and can verify to us that he is in fact in a gang? I will accept the fact that you are not judging based on race, but it’s still a fairly baseless assumption regardless. I am sorry I assumed you were assuming he was in a gang because of race (see where assuming gets us?)

    Just for the record, “Money, Power, Love, Respect” are (for lack of a better word) “virtues” that a lot of young people, gang or not, value.

  47. How does a person appear to be a dick from a picture? If that were true, half of the people that appear on modblog are dicks (which I doubt they are).

    Wtf O.o

  48. thats where i gotta wonder about people’s understanding of the swastika. i dont mean to draw this out Roo but you do understand that the Nazi’s didnt use it as a “racist” symbol right?

    i kinda feel the whole ‘reclaiming’ thing and want to agree with it. even help myself. but i dont think wearing it as a tattoo is a good way to go about it. i feel its a really stupid, crappy and disrespectful way to go. its possible that going that route with be more likely to hide the history of the nazis and the holocaust, instead of reminding us where the human race went terribly wrong.

    Imagine this:
    When a holocaust survivor (or family member, etc) sees someone wearing the swastika as a tattoo, Tshirt, patch, etc… do you really think they are going to think ‘oh, cool they are reclaiming that ancient symbol’. Hell no, they are probably deeply harmed by seeing it. For the most part the swastika is still spreading fear, pain and negativity.

    Also consider this, there are still MANY groups that use it in a pro-nazi, pro-racist way. These people recieve COMFORT and SUPPORT from the wearing of the swastika, even if SOME might be ‘reclaimers’. Keep in mind the neo-nazi aganda is growing again (esp. in Europe), please be careful what you tattoo into your skin for life…

    again, IMO the swastika will never be ‘cool’ and it should be some fucking fashion show-off device for tatooed hipsters.

    i suppose there will ALWAYS be a place for the TRUE swastika in a positive light. but maybe we should leave it to the people of the cultures that originated it. maybe it should be left for those pieces of art and spirituality that it belongs to. maybe we should =nt be trying to co-opt it for out own purposes, cuz thats what shitler did!

    oops, too long…
    WTF?FTW!

  49. sorry sara, tempers and all.
    do some research into the crown of the LatinKings, the “laws” are very similar from Gang to gang. at least the old school ones. i would be very interested to see what his fifth finger says, i would guess ‘knowledge’.
    i sure as shit wouldnt be caught in Chicago without some knowledge.

  51. Hey, you think if something happened to any other religious symbol (cross, sickle(sp?) etc.) similar to what happened to the swastika, that they’d be a taboo tatoo? I wonder about that every now and then…
    anyhow, maybe the guy’s just some hapless youth who’s trying to be cool? I mean hovaaaa (i.e. Jay-z) had a song titled something to that effect.
    Meh, just speculation.

  53. fluffenutter: you DO realize that the swastika was used in VARIOUS different cultures, right? Though Asia and Asia-Minor as well as quite a few other cultures from Europe as well. So by saying we should just limit its usage to those whom it derived from is a loaded statement, since so many religions and cultures hold sway over the swastika.

    Also maybe it IS gang related, but really what does it matter? So ModBlog is unable to display gang related tattoo work, yet we’re capable of showing a vast array of more controversial imagery and topics?

    ModBlog is suppose to be documenting Body Modification in a wide-spread blanket…The Good, The Bad, The Ugly,etc…So there’s no reason why it CAN’T be here.

    Also one must remember that although gang life is out there, there are also people who “play” gang-banger and try to emulate what they read/see in gang related media (tv, books, movies,etc)

    And in reality its all about context…Those are some strong powerful words that can often be used in a daily life for just about anyone….

    Personally I’d rather read/see stuff about a guy who gets his fingers tattooed, then read about scat play and self-degradation…But that’s just my own personal opinion.

    Roo you are, as always, peachy keen awesome supreme…keep up the amazing work! <3

  54. i think it woulda been cooler to get “love” put on his ring finger. but then again im a romantic. lol.

  55. Wow..um, ok. :\
    I agree with Valentine though. I’ve been reading Modblog for years, and I think your doing fine Roo. 🙂

  56. maybe he was scorned by many past lovers so Love is placed on his middle finger in an attempt to display his hatred of love with the big old: “FUCK YOU LOVE” giving it the middle finger salute 😉

    but maybe that’s cuz I’m a bitter jaded getting to be older man lmao

  57. Well at least the homophobia stopped around post 20 or so.
    Honestly, it’s just totally unacceptable to use “gay” as an insult. Really fucking despespectful to all the gay men and women out there who have to live with oppression and violence, every fucking day.
    You might think it’s cool, or alright, but it’s NOT, ok?
    There is nothing wrong with being gay, but when you use the term pejoratively, you make it seem like being gay is disgusting/bad/uncool/naff, and by doing that you are actually injuring people, so think about it before you open your little bigotted mouth.

  58. i’d like to just observe that:

    1. in the few weeks that i have been following this blog, this is the first westernized black person that i remember featured. Admittedly, i’m new, but surely the body modification ‘community’ would consider itself, on the whole, quite unracist. but is one black person a month representative of body modification wearers at large, or is this ‘community’ a bit narrower than it identifies? you decide.

    2. at said first appearance of a black person, the discussion in the comments is tremendously racially infused. i don’t recall any comments on any other race’s presence or race, especially whiteness. even in the pictures of the white man participating in an austrailian aboriginee ritual. am i the only one who finds this suspicious?

    i wonder where fluffernutter gathers the evidence that these are mantras of gang life–experience? imagination? media? wikipedia? when i see these words together, i think of hip hop, black masculinity, institutions, capitalism, forces in life that affect people these days…all as relevant to tattoo on yourself as ‘capture life,’ or ‘mattel.’

    ..or, you know, maybe that’s just me. like i said, i’m new.

  59. Chaq: Personally I think those words should be used in reference to their actual meanings and not the current urban slang trend that they are labeled with.

    Gay = Happy

    Queer = Strange

    Fag = Bundle Of Sticks/Cigarette(s)

    Dante: “Remember that we worked the QuickStop in England”

    *Flashback montage*

    Customer: “Pack of fags”

    Randell: “You’re a fag!”

    Customer: “A fag’s a cigarette mate”

    Randell: “I’m not your mate fag!”

    *Return back to scene*

  60. roo, you are doing a wonderful job with all the bountiful updates! i can check modblog multiple times a day and there are almost always new posts for my entertainment. keep up the amazing work – and, you know, make sure you have time for a social life, food, sleep… that sort of thing 🙂 thanks for being great!

  61. :op Why it’s a slanging match let’s all grab some mud. The ‘respect’ is really faded I thought it said pi something or other maybe it’s just me being unable to read. The nails are freaking me out though.

    Did anyone ever think this could be a scarface fan ‘first you get the money(money), then you get the power(power)and then you get the women(love). With a big theme in the movie being respect.

  62. @Roo: What I do like is the fact that the site is now frequently updated. What I liked about Shannon is that he had the habit of always posting a short storie about the subject. I can tell you try, but with your restless posting I can imagine it is hard to post more text as well. I for one liked the text. The storie behind the tattoo. Take more time for it. Choose quality over quantity. What I detest most however is the cursing and disrespect in the comments. In all the years with Shannon I have never read a racist comment. From time to time people called someone stupid for wearing certain tattoos. Than Shannon would pop up to teach them to respect and value everyone as they are.

    But Roo, you are Roo and Shannon is Shannon. I guess I will get used to your style. It ain’t too bad though! 😉 (how much did you raise by not shaving btw? Somehow I missed the result..)

  66. Oh sweet jesus.
    So I’m to understand that because roo posted a picture of a tattoo in a blog about body modification he some how is a racist, neo-nazi supporting, gang-banging bigot who inspires hateful feeling twords people because of their race and or sexual preference and therefore is doing a poor job running this site?

    Thats a bit of a stretch.
    Besides who gives a shit about other people opinions? Especially ones who come here of all places to voice them? So some readers hate black people and others hate jews and then there’s the ever imagnitive gay-bashers, get over it. You are certainly not change anyone’s outlook by calling them names in caps on the internet.

    On a side note, roo the only thing I haaaattteeee is the two seperate posts on one entry, and you have to click through to see the second (somtimes unrelated) post. I’m afraid I might miss some fun stuff. Wicked annoying but other than that, mad love to you.

  67. If you’re curious on what tattoos are being used by gangs, call your local Police/Sheriff/local law enforcement agency. Ask for the gang squad and they will help you out with common tattoos. Unfortunately, a lot of tattoos that people can get have double meanings. The rules of life post here for example are also the rules of a lot of gangs. Lightning bolts are cool, but are white supremacist. So are spiderweb joints. 5 point and 6 point crowns. Etcetera, etcetera ad nauseum. Being law enforcement I have made a study of tattoos in the criminal ‘element’ of society. Considering so many people consider tattoos for criminals, I am kinda surprised that there are so few ‘jail house’ tattoos on this site.

  68. Bubblez – actually, Scarface was the first thing I thought of when I saw this =)

  69. O.o
    Sometimes it’s like a daytime soap opera…
    Roo, you’re doing great! Just keep chugging through everyone else’s mud.

  70. In regards to #41, unfortunately not everyone has enough money, nor sees the value of paying for good tattoo work. I used to work at a shop in an urban area, where a lot of people got poorly executed work done by folks working out of a basement with little to no training… rather than going to a shop. A lot of people would complain that $40 for a name or something small was waaay too expensive.

    In regards to representations of other ethnicities getting tattoos, quality, etc. People from all walks of life have something in common getting tattoos or piercings. However, based on their culture, lifestyle, and knowledge/understanding of tattooing/body mod culture, however you wish to word it… reflects in the tattoos give/received. It is what it is. Perhaps if people could work towards understanding that what people do is different, based on money, privilege, social status, and access…

    People do like things that are aesthetically pleasing… however, I guess there is a place for everything.

  71. i love read modblog..cause all the prejudice of us coming out..jajaja in a supposed open mind community.

    …about the concept of modblog, i always find like a place to see differents ways of life through body, can u like it or not … a place to see diversity, just that.

    Roo – keep going! u are uploading alot stuff, thats nice 🙂

  72. Too bad no one knows who this guy is, we could just ask him and clear up any uncertainties…

    Personally, I’m just happy to see more diversity on Modblog the past few weeks, keep it up!

  73. PREACH IT, #57!

    using the term “gay” in modern culture has become the semi-equivalent (i know it’s not the exact same thing!) to racist slang terms that i refuse to even type (but i’m sure you can think of a few.) i say this because i’ve heard several people that do use it negatively back it up with bullshit statements like “i’m not homophobic, i have a gay aunt/cousin/friend/niece/etc.” or “as long as it’s not used in the presence of a homosexual, i don’t see the big deal.” it is still used as an insult, it is still seen as negative, it still effects the person(s) you’re aiming it at.

    what’s kind of funny is, it just empowers (and slightly enrages) me to get more involved in the glbt community. also, to reclaim the fuck out of it!

    all i thought of when i saw this post was that song by lil kim. actually, there are quite a few hip-hop artists today with lyrics featuring these words. with that said, i looked up the latin kings crown and though there are similiarities, there aren’t enough to base assumptions off of.

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