Vox Humana said:I think there are two issues here. First, there is a question of morality
and then a question of "law." It is possible for things to be legal and
immoral, and moral but not legal. As I see it, a line is a way to fairly
allocate resources. It allows the grocery store to check people out on a
first-come, first serve basis. Line are the great equalizers, making all
people equal. There is a basic understanding that no reservations are
accepted for the service. The fact that the store makes no attempt to
enforce the contract means that there is no "law." In other words, the fact
that people violate the understanding without consequence, means that it is
technically acceptable.
I have no problem with people waiting in line with their stuff while someone
goes back to get something they forgot. I sure wouldn't appreciate them holding
a place. I know what it's like to be in a busy coffee shop and wait in line for
service, and then have people come in behind me and one of them goes and grabs
the last table.
Quoted message said:That said, I think it is immoral to hold a place. Place holding assumes
that the holder is more important and more entitled than others. Line
holding uses resources that rightfully belong to others. Line holding steals
time from others. I think the morality is clearer if you change the context
a bit. Instead of the line at the grocery, let's say it is the restroom.
If you go to the store with a friend and mention that you eventfully want to
visit the restroom, would it be OK for the friend to sit in a stall so it
would be ready at your convenience? I think not. If you mention that you
would like to read a particular book, would it be OK for a friend to
immediately go to the library and check-out the book so you could read it in
the future?
I don't see a problem with a friend borrowing a book for someone. They are doing
it on their card and therefore assuming responsibility for the book and its safe
return. Our library generally has a 7 day period and a reserve system. Books
cannot be renewed if they have been reserved, and overdue fines are higher for 7
day books. But if the book is just sitting in the shelf and no one else is
reading it there is no problem.
My wife has a friend is is notorious for borrowing borrowing things and not
returning them, or looking after them. She borrowed by tree pole loppers last
summer with a promise to return them "soon". I started pestering her to return
it in the winter. Finally in May I told her to get it back to me because I
needed it. It turned out that she had never got around to using it, and she had
left it outside all winter. She ended up buying me a new one. This same woman
borrowed a book from my wife. This book was part of her book club deal where
each person buys a book, reads it and then passes it on to the next person on
the list. My wife had finished the book early and agreed to loan it to her
friend, telling her that she had to have it back by the end of the month in
order to pass it on. It was almost three weeks late. It's pretty hard to
explain to a member of the club that don't have the book for her because you
loaned it to someone outside of the club.
This same woman cam by last week wanting to know if we had any good books she
could borrow. I told her that most of the good books I get are borrowed from
the library. She told me that she can't borrow from the library because she owes
it too much money for overdue fines and lost <?> books. Then she proceeded to
tell me that when she borrows a good book she gets possessive and wants to keep
it. And she wanted me to loan her books?? Fat chance.
