This is your future, and it's happening one minute at a time

[andrewducker]

Now, apparently corneal tattooing has been around for ages, covering up scars and leucomas and other disgusting shit. But it took Shannon Larratt, of the indispensable ModBlog and the BME online community of body-modification fanciers, to ask the question – what about scleral tattooing? Well, a specialist told him that tattooing your eyeball is basically dangerous and stupid. Shannon, being Shannon, decided that this was Condition Win and set out along with two friends to get stabbed in the eyemeat.

More here.

Comments

[cx650.livejournal.com]

At my age, with my experience of dealing with 'Joe Public' on a one-to-one level as visitors to the events I help run and as a plain ordinary Taxi-driver, this surprises me NOT.

No matter how intelligent and/or educated the individual, en masse people are incredibly stupid. If someone of 'accepted' intellect chooses to do something it seems to be automatically regarded as OK even if it is palpably wrong.

[cybik.livejournal.com]

I regularly read the BMEzine modblog that Shannon writes and while that's pretty extreme, there are things that people do to themselves that are a lot more so. I certainly wouldn't do it myself (though the geek in me is happy at the Fremen thing), admittedly, but I think it's perfectly right for other people to be able to have it done if they so desire. I mean, hell, look at what Shannon has tattooed on himself. It's pretty icky by most people's standards.

[andrewducker]

I tend to agree. I don't feel the need to do it, but part of me is glad that people at least _can_.

After all, we'll never discover the next new cool thing without people trying 99 things that are terribly disturbing.

[cybik.livejournal.com]

I'd love to have bionic implants - like ones so I can see much better or so I can access the net or so on - but I wouldn't want to be one of the guinea pigs. I admire people who have the balls to be the first people to try something.

[andrewducker]

You may be interested to know that other people are being guinea pigs for you:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/sci/tech/6368089.stm

[meaningrequired.livejournal.com]

I kinda feel if someone wants to tattoo the whites of their eye they should be allowed to go do it themselves... and if they end up blind or in pain its their own fault.

I'm all for freedom of artistry.... but some things just seem a bit stupid to me :)

I would dearly love to have eye surgery so I don't need glasses, but I realise that its not perfected yet, and its not recommended to young people as it only lasts a number of years. I would be mortified if I lost my sight because I decided the whites of my eyes should have a funky design.

[andrewducker]

Well, exactly.

But if becomes more common they'll no doubt get better at it, and the results from long-term studies will be very useful for all sorts of things.

Self-chosen guinea-pigs are the best.

[surliminal.livejournal.com]

blech!!!!