What's the big deal about body piercings?

Time and again I have read about the horrors of body piercing. The stories warning people tend to come out most during the summer months. I suppose that this is the time that most vanilla types (normal non-pierced people) notice piercing the most.

But the hype is really way over the top. There are millions of people with piercings, and they range from business owners to the kid on the skateboard down the block. While those who are younger tend to be flashier with their piercing don’t believe this is only a young kid’s fad. I have known lots of friends that go to the office, proudly knowing that their piercing will never be notice except by the most perceptive of people.

But what I’d really like to know is this. Why are so many people offended or fearful of piercing? It’s not the people with piercing (or tattoos for that matter) that tend to write most of the stories or spreading rumors of horror and pain. And I notice that people without these body enhancements are the most concerned about them.

Since a piercing or tattoo on one person has nothing to do with anyone else, where does the concern come from?