<p>Spider (sigh) got a tattoo of the ace of spades on the left side of his chest last Summer. It was after his acceptance to the Foundation program and after his DODMERB exam.</p>
<p>Can anyone say for sure what he needs to do next? If/when his appointment comes through, we know he will have to declare the tattoo on the paperwork. What else? The regs I’ve Googled say that he needs to contact the Senior Medical Officer in writing:</p>
<p>This should answer your question:</p>
<p>The Naval Academy strongly supports the U.S. Navy Policy prohibiting body alterations that are prejudicial to good order, discipline and morale or are of a nature to bring discredit upon the Naval Service. Body alterations that are excessive, obscene, sexually explicit or advocate or symbolize sex, gender, racial, religious, ethnic or national origin discrimination, as well as any body alteration that advocates or symbolizes gang affiliation, supremacist and extremist groups, or drug use are prohibited. Any body alteration that is visible in uniform clothing is prohibited. Midshipmen are prohibited from acquiring body alterations while a member of the Brigade of Midshipmen or while a member of the Naval Academy Preparatory School. Pre-existing body alterations must also adhere to the above stated Navy policy. Any body alterations that are visible outside of a regulation Naval Academy swim suit (men’s suit covers from waist to half thigh length and a female suit is a standard one-piece tank top competition suit) are prohibited and must be removed in accordance with regulations unless a waiver is granted by the Naval Academy Body Alteration Review Board. </p>
<p>Candidates accepting an offer of appointment will be asked to state whether any of the above conditions are present. All candidates so identified will undergo independent review by the Body Alteration Review Board. Candidates with any skin marking which does not conform to our policy may be denied admission unless the condition can be corrected before induction or the candidate agrees to pursue correction after reporting. </p>
<p><a href=“http://www.usna.edu/Catalog/2005-2006organizationbb.pdf[/url]”>http://www.usna.edu/Catalog/2005-2006organizationbb.pdf</a></p>
<p>Good luck to Spider cuz I think having them removed is a bit painful.</p>
<p>I noticed a few midshipman with fairly large tatoos during PEP while at parent’s weekend. Some were prior enlisted. Gotta love our kids…Luckily, mine is afraid of needles…</p>
<p>On the Academy paperwork that came in the permit to report package there is a form that all appointees sign and return. </p>
<p>“U.S. Naval Academy Midshipman Candidate Statement of Understanding Regarding Body Alterations”</p>
<p>You have to describe the any abody alteration and attach a photograph.
Acknowledge that as a condition of Admission that I voluntarily agree to undergo all necessary treatment to remove body alterations that do not conform to regulation and that that they must be removed by the start of the 2nd class academic year and removal treatment must begin no later than January of my Plebe year.</p>
<p>Ouch, I feel their pain!</p>
<p>They have until 2/C year to have the tattoos removed</p>
<p>sorry for the double information…Profmom2’s post went up just I sent mine.</p>
<p>Thanks, all. Great info. I emailed the bad news to the Spider. We’ll start getting it sandblasted/lasered off during Spring break, I guess.</p>
<p>Ouch! The follies of youth can be painful</p>
<p>Okay, you can blame the follies of youth; but, uh, where were the parents?
Even my [now] 19-year old asks for permission [advice?] before undertaking certain activities.</p>
<p>Oh well, been gone for a while and just thought I would check the building anxiety as it slowly builds towards eruption on I-day.</p>
<p>unfortunately, in my line of work one gets to see lots of things that should never see the light of day…</p>
<p>the once-proud ship, now sinking between rolls of skin yielding to the forces of gravity…</p>
<p>roses that have long lost their bloom, adorning the swollen ankle of some AARP cardholder-</p>
<p>eagles with tallons hanging out, now going to grab one’s derierre…(gotta love the aging process…)</p>
<p>the best ones are the names that get “reworked” as the significant others change…over and over and over again…perhaps taken over by a “snake” that winds its way through the “I love Rosemary”…who has long ago moved onto greener pastures…</p>
<p>have fun getting them off-</p>
<p>to all others, stick to the peel-and-stick variety- “wipe on- wipe off”…</p>
<p>Tats on a girl [sort of like snakes on a plane] are a good indicator of what kind of girl she is.</p>
<p>Tats on a boy . . . uh, I guess the same thing.</p>
<p>Oh, yeah, I forgot . . . its “self-expression.”</p>
<p>Nevermind. I was going to say something.</p>
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<p>I wouldn’t blame the parents. My 19 year old may ask for my advice but he doesn’t always follow it. That is part of growing up and becoming independent. </p>
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<p>I don’t judge people by outward appearances.</p>
<p>I have a flower tattoo on my lower leg. It was not a youthful folly since I was 34 years old when I got it. It is beautiful and meaningful to me. If people think I am “that kind of a girl” that is their problem, not mine.</p>
<p>“Tats on a girl [sort of like snakes on a plane] are a good indicator of what kind of girl she is.”</p>
<p>oh yeah, I have a tattooed girl… National Honor Society, AP Scholar with Distinction. Black belt. Juilliard student.
Does this mean if I put a tat on my youngest I can be assured of high AP test scores? where is that needle? </p>
<p>ps - the Navy making them remove tats? OUR Navy? What’s the world coming too?</p>
<p>The kids described on this thread are extraordinary, and the choice they’re making (or trying to make) is selfless and noble. For my money, they get to act like kids once in a while. </p>
<p>Don’t you dare feel guilty about “where were the parents?”, Spidermom. Responsible parents let kids this age make decisions, and let them live with/learn from the results. Thanks for sharing your situation here for others to learn from.</p>
<p>Remember folks, there’s a different standard for officers in the Navy. What’s acceptable for enlisted personel is not for officers, so yes, the Navy is making those Mids who have tattoos that don’t adhere to regs remove them by their 2/C year. Young people who choose the Academy choose a different path and the rules that apply to other college students, don’t always apply to them. They’ll get used to it soon enough</p>
<p>While they’re essentially regrettable and inappropriate for USN officers, let’s not read too much into their defining those sufficiently short sighted to have gotten them in the first place. I don’t get 'em, especially when the tattooed slips over the hill a bit, but each to his/her own. Unless they wanna be a ringknocker. Then their own ain’t.</p>
<p>Interesting how all I said was that you could tell what kind of girl [boy] they were and many took that to be a negative statement. Especially, it seems the pro-tat crowd. A bit testy are we?</p>
<p>My, my, my. . . the private messages are interesting.</p>
<p>Actually tatted girls are usually a lot more fun than untatted girls. Some of the ones I have known were even smart from time to time.</p>
<p>Anyway, thought that would stir things up a bit.</p>
<p>Oh, yea, I wan’t referring to a 19-year old following advice. Mostly, what I was thinking was that in many states a child under the age of 18 requires parental consent to get a tattoo.</p>
<p>Officious Jerk? Not just a plain jerk but an “officious” one. Over a benign remark? Hate to see if I had said that tatted girls [boys] deserve their reputation!
[After all, doesn’t everybody?]</p>
<p>Bill you haven’t caused this much controversy since you went after NavGirl. Ha ha :D</p>