‘Male Karen’ Complains About Tattoo Parlor Not Giving Him A Tattoo, The Owner Shuts Him Down By Telling People What Actually Happened

The internet’s a blessing and a curse because any mistakes that you make in life can find their way online where they can stay there. Forever. On the other hand, these mistakes can act as cautionary tales for others. On how not to behave. Ever!

A redditor shared a story on the ‘Eff You Karen’ subreddit about a “male Karen” (which is technically a ‘Kyle’ if you’re wondering) who tried to aggressively barge into a Scottish tattoo parlor only to later complain about being mistreated. The owner of the Archangel 1608 Tattoo Studio in Glasgow, David McKinlay, quickly put them in their place in the most epic way. Read on to see what happened. I think that you'll agree that the customer was acting extremely rudely and got what was coming to them. And, I’ve got to say, I’m a big fan of how the Scottish handle issues like this. No mollycoddling. No nonsense. Just a shower of sarcasm. And some gritty Scottish swearing. And all is well with the world.

"The ‘gentleman’ in question hasn’t contacted us since my last reply. As we’re now closed for three weeks, until the 12th of December for lockdown, we don’t know if he‘ll show up on the 1st or not... I kinda hope he does," David told Bored Panda. He pointed out that anyone who's near Glasgow and wants to get a tattoo at his salon shouldn't feel uncomfortable getting in touch. "I really only respond like this when people are repeatedly rude or obnoxious. We’re all sweethearts here, and love what we do, from the initial design process to actually doing the tattoo."

More info: Instagram (Archangel 1608 Tattoo Studio) | Instagram (artist Chrisse Campbell Macgregor) | Instagram (artist DIV)

David revealed that, fortunately, they don't get too many clients like this one. The owner is also a fan of disproportionate escalation if he's on the receiving end of abuse. "You obviously don’t want to upset the person that’s making permanent marks in your skin! If someone is rude (repeatedly), then I’ll give it back tenfold. I’m not here to be abused or treated like an idiot. All we want to do is give people cool tattoos, have a laugh, and make sure it’s a great experience for everyone."

According to the owner, the Covid-19 pandemic had affected their business, like most other people's. They were closed for a whopping 3 months over the summer. However, the studio's pulling through with the support of the local community. "Fortunately, we have a lot of very loyal and very understanding clients who stuck with us, and since starting back in July, we’ve never been busier in the 16 years we’ve been here. In fact, we’re very lucky to have had another brilliant artist join us."

Now, we know that some of you dear Readers feel bad about people like the redditor who shared the story using the name ‘Karen’ to talk about someone who is being extremely rude and wants to speak to your manager. Bored Panda previously spoke about the origins of the Karen meme and how it can sometimes be offensive with ‘Know Your Meme’s’ Senior Editor, Matt Schimkowitz.

Schimkowitz from ‘Know Your Meme’ said that Karen memes started out as a parody of someone demanding to speak to a manager but have been changing and growing. “So I think that users of the meme should be cognizant that what they're meme-ing might not be their intent anymore. It's very possible that the meme could grow even farther to exhibit misogynistic tendencies, which are somewhat already present,” he said.

"Meme-ing can be nihilistic artform and rewards really ugly behavior in some cases. Sometimes, what starts as a fairly inoffensive meme can grow into something really hateful, like Pepe the Frog. I could see that happening to Karen—though, I'm not really sold one way or the other on the debate,” Schimkowitz continued.

He added that we should always “meme with caution” and pointed out that the origins of the Karen meme are slightly unclear. However, his go-to theory is that the meme originated in Dane Cook’s 2005 comedy special bit “The Friend That Nobody Likes.”

What do you think about what happened between the customer and the tattoo parlor owner, dear Pandas? Would you have done the same if you were in David's shoes? Share your thoughts in the comment section right below.