when complete strangers stop him to ask him why he's destroying his face with piercings.
Why should someone I don't even know be concerned about what I do to my body?
I just say to them "Worry about yourself instead of someone you don't even know that likes to get stabbed in the face with a 14 gauge needle
It's because they care and nothing to do with them being scared of something different. Maybe...
Some people don't get it. Sometimes it prompts them to ask stupid questions.