I almost got a tattoo once, but chose not to for some of the reasons The Harbinger of Ferocity mention above. My father had a tat on his forearm that read, "USAF '56 - ". He planned to finish it later with the year he got out but never did. So, I wanted one that read, "US ARMY '82 - '03" just because dad had the same idea. Obviously, mine would pertain to me. But I never did it. I may have also included crossed rifles for Infantry and the image of my regimental crest on a bicep. Again, never did it. Like HoF said, it is definitely a personal thing.