It’s common knowledge that chicken finger day is the best day at the Berkeley Café. Though the lines are long no matter how early you try to get there, the wait is worth it because you know that at the end of that line awaits the greatness that is SAGE’s chicken fingers. So you patiently wait your turn, satisfied that you will be rewarded. But the line isn’t getting any shorter. And that’s when you notice—people are cutting in at the front of the line, disregarding both the rules and common courtesy. How dare they ruin chicken finger day?

Line cutting is a huge problem because, put simply, it truly upsets the people who actually follow the rules. Junior Ali Arcaro felt like she had been “disrespected.” Arcaro wished that the line cutters would “find their place in the line and this world.” To Arcaro, line cutters were just “rude” people. Line cutting is not only inconsiderate, but also especially annoying. Dean Lindsey also believed that line cutters are “incredibly disrespectful to their classmates” and “very unkind.”

The lines at Berkeley’s Main Ingredient have gotten so long that students have refrained from waiting in line there. Senior Brie Nicker, who is a prefect, no longer eats at Main Ingredient. Nicker noted that the people who cut lines are usually very casual about it. Her experience has been that students walk up to their friends and then offhandedly insert themselves into the line. Brie explained that “they try to make it seem as if they don’t know they’re cutting the line, which sometimes even tricks me and other people into thinking they were originally in the line.” This system of placing oneself into the line by striking up a conversation with another line-dweller is very common.

Both Nicker and Arcaro shared that they would usually not do anything if someone cut in front of them. Arcaro said that she would generally let it slide depending on her mood, but she felt that “it’s not worth it to say anything to the person.” Nicker revealed that she believes it is “awkward” to say anything because they “usually don’t care.”

The last and most important question asked was how to stop line cutting. Although Nicker and Arcaro both agreed that students have to speak out if someone tries to cut in front of them, none of them had ever voiced their concerns. How can Berkeley students stop line cutting if everyone is too afraid or too indifferent to say anything? Dean Lindsey suggested that meeting with Student Forum is always a possibility. Student Forum is here to represent the students’ needs, and will gladly work with the Deans to have those needs met.  Lindsey also said that once in a while there are teachers who step in when they see line cutting, but there will not always be a teacher to speak for us.

“Speak up” has been said so many times about so many things, but speaking up is the solution here. If speaking up does not work, the alternative solution is to intimidate the line cutter by exposing him or her to the vicious and impatient growls of your stomach. Saying “Hey, you just cut me” might sound a little childish, but line cutting itself is a thing that kindergarteners do.