Getting Cut In Front Of In Line

[AskTheCPT]

I was at immigration yesterday and some visa agent (i think) just walked right in front of me and put his paperwork in the front of the agent even though my number was called.

It reminded me of how much I hate getting cut in front of. I also happened at that super-market in the bottom floor of MBK. I was standing in line for like 10 minutes in the pastry section and some bastard walked right in front of me. If that happened in the States I would tell him to F*** off but here what to do?

Seems I see people cutting in line all the time. It really doesn't affect me at all, but just the idea makes me want to do something.

Is this just me? Or is this an issue in Bangkok? Or have I just not let go of my USA attitude?

Edited August 12, 2009 by AskTheCPT

[neverdie]

Yes, thats definately one thing that happens alot in Thailand.

Its kind of like the idiots that try to get into the lift before the people inside it get out.

Pathetic people only concerned for themselves.

[Jingthing]

Yes it happens a lot. It is largely cultural. Queues are not respected as much. The person to get the attention is the person demanding attention. It is unnerving but not usually worth starting an international incident. I am not above glaring or even shoving back when I think it might be productive and/or amusing. I find giving the evil eye to offending hiso ladies especially rewarding.

Edited August 12, 2009 by Jingthing

[thaimate]

I just push back in front of them and say sorry i was here first.

Edited August 12, 2009 by thaimate

[DP25]

Yeah, see it happen sometimes. Few people in Thailand will say anything when this happens so they get away with it.

[DP25]

I am not above glaring or even shoving back when I think it might be productive and/or amusing. I find giving the evil eye to offending hiso ladies especially rewarding.

Once was in line with about 10 people behind me and someone cut in front of me, so I gave them the evil eye. They started to walk away and I figured they were going to the back, but they just got in line behind me and ahead of the other 9 people.

[dondraper]

START A THAI VISA THREAD

[Moonrakers]

I see it very often. How I react to it depends on three things:

1) How big/numerous they are.

2) How much I have had to drink and:

3) A combination of 1 & 2.

I forgot:

4) Whether or not my wife is stood behind me.

Edited August 12, 2009 by Moonrakers

[garyh]

Had a bunch of yanks do it to us at a restaurant in Chiang Mai while taking my wife out for mothers day.

[Scott]

I get upset rather easily with people cutting in line because I am usually in hurry. At a grocery store I often go to, people walk around to the front of the counter and put their stuff down. If the clerk helps them, I simply leave my stuff there and walk away. Fortunately, there's another store across the way. I don't say anything. I just let them deal with the groceries on the counter.

Today at Big C, I had a similar instance. A little kid (maybe 9 or 10) just squeezed in front of my cart. He was there for a couple of minutes and then his mother, who was off to the side started handing him stuff to put on the conveyer belt. I simply pushed in front of him, moved the stuff back and put mine on the conveyer belt. I felt bad for the kid, but what a cheeky mother!

Make sure you stay close enough to the person ahead of you that people can't squeeze in front of you.

I must admit, however, in the past several years it's gotten a lot better than it was before. When I first got here many years ago, it was the national pastime. Fortunately, I had worked in Hong Kong and China and there cutting in line is a combination between an art-form and a martial art.

[Jingthing]

If you are bigger it is easier to avoid, but agreed you have to leave little space, or the space will be filled.

[Scalawag]

Compared to China, where I lived for two years, cutting in line here is nothing!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[noahvail]

What I don't get is when people jump the queue to get their baggage into the bus - when they already have assigned seating. I kinda just laugh and let them go. My baggage goes on last - but comes off first. Maybe queue-jumping is just ingrained so much they just do it without thinking.

That being said, it's a s***load worse in the States. It's like road rage up close and personal

[Jingthing]

That being said, it's a s***load worse in the States. It's like road rage up close and personal

Well it depends on the situation but try jumping a line in NYC and then you will really see what rage is all about.

[sunholidaysun1]

Best to do what I do , jump straight back in front of who ever got in front of you , then Fart - loudly ! There is normally no one in the queue when i do that

[richard_smith237]

I experienced something similar at an airline checkin counter.

An Indian lady already in front of me invited about 7 friends to join her in the que. I pointed out that this was unfair so she just put me in front of her. I then pointed out that this was still unfair to the others in the que and that if she wanted to que together with her friends then be considerate to others and que From the back.

Others in the que thanked me.

Sometimes people know waht they are doing is wrong, they are just trying to take advantage....

[thaijasmine]

What I don't get is when people jump the queue to get their baggage into the bus - when they already have assigned seating. I kinda just laugh and let them go. My baggage goes on last - but comes off first. Maybe queue-jumping is just ingrained so much they just do it without thinking.

That being said, it's a s***load worse in the States. It's like road rage up close and personal

try boarding a plane in Bombay when you just been bused to the

stairway alongside the aircraft

[OxfordWill]

START A THAI VISA THREAD

hahaha!!

[Tod Daniels]

Queue jumping is without question my pet peeve here in the glorious “Land ‘O Thais”. (That and the thais trying to push their way onto the sky train BEFORE anyone can get off)

To the queue jumpers I say almost without fail, in a very sharp loud voice;

อย่าแซงคิวซิ (ya-sang-queue-si!!!)

which translates into the no nonsense statement; "Don't frickin' jump the line."

Another effective and equally disparaging line which is slightly more difficult to say is;

ตาบอดไหม มีคนหลายคนรออยู่แล้ว (Da-bawt mai, me kon, lai kon raw uu laeow)

which when directed at the transgressor translates into a very condescending; “Are you blind, there are people waiting already.”

Now with that being said, to disparage thais and their errant ways safely in the thai language, you MUST always know your audience.

If you see an obviously drunk thai teen with a basket full of 12-14 large beer Leos who belligerently staggers to the front of the queue; perhaps neither line is the best one in your repertoire to use. There's a good chance when you go outside his drunken cohorts who were eagerly waiting his return will beat you to a pulp.

In that situation, I would rely on motioning with my hand while saying the sarcastic remark of ไปก่อนเถอะ ไม่รีบ (bai gon thur, mai reep) which means "Go ahead, I'm not in a hurry".

[Geekfreaklover]

Line/queue hopping is a cultural thing in the land of smiles and us as guests in the Kingdom of Thailand should accept that fact. After all, we are only guests and should be prepared to accept such things.

Would we be prepared to expect a Thai to stand in line at the post office in London? - No - we would let him jump the line, because that is his cultural preogrative.

Just takes a bit of cultural awareness, guys.

We as westerners don't have a monoloply on politeness.

Joking aside, I'm in a bad mood today. It is a good thing that the banks etc have begun using the ticket/number system over the last year. Cuts out the queue jumpers.

[AskTheCPT]

Whew,

I'm glad I'm not alone, I was beginning to question my sanity!

I thought I was either just an impatient A-hole or imagining this going on, but I guess it's really true

I heard about the giant cooking oil stampede in China where like 10 people were killed so I could only imagine...

Edited August 12, 2009 by AskTheCPT

[jasreeve17]

Yes, I hate it too.

I'm obviously not as relaxed and cultured as the rest of you because I instantly fall into loud rants... This cultural stuff is just toss, I've spoken to many many Thais about it and they all hate it, many tell me they don't put up with queue jumping and always fight back.

Scott's comment seems fair - just leave the shopping on the counter and walk out. It's really up to the staff to be more proactive too, which is happening more and more; over the last couple of years I've increasingly seen people jump to the front only for the counter staff to send them to the back of the queue.

[dumbnewbie]

It's maddening when someone does that to you. It happened to me in China and Korea. In Seoul, some big, tough-looking middle aged guy (undercover cop?) cut in front of me in a small shop. After recovering from the shock, I bravely went around him and resumed my place in line. Then he immediately did it AGAIN, without so much as looking at me or saying anything. At that point I was so furious I was shaking, but decided he might be a cop or something so I backed down.

In Beijing, a long line to get into Mao's 'Maosoleum'. Me, my girlfriend and her kid cousin. The line isn't single file, but a shifting herd between two ropes. People repeatedly cut into the line up ahead of us, often by ducking under the rope. Other people would push past us from behind (we'd try to block them, but to no effect - they seemed more puzzled than ashamed or apologetic and would simply retreat for a few moments and then try again). Sensing my increasing indignation, my girlfriend's cousin starting yelling at the stern-looking commie woman who was apparently in charge of keeping order. She turned on him like a vicious dog, threatening us with stuff like "You're in China now! You want trouble?" When my girlfriend translated, I put my arm around him like a friend and my hand over his mouth (because he was yelling back at her "if you kept an orderly line here there wouldn't be any trouble!", etc.) and gave my biggest smile to the commie bitch, bowing a little for good measure. Geez. Nice culture. Who knows what they might've done to the poor kid.

Later I asked my girlfriend if I was wrong to censor her cousin like that, and she said "no! you were awesome!". But I told her that I felt bad about getting so upset by the line-jumping - that that was just the culture here and I couldn't expect it to be like the US and have to learn to not let it infuriate me. She had no reply to that... just sort of thought about it.

Edited August 12, 2009 by dumbnewbie

[kurnell]

I look forward to people jumping the queue and this is one of my favourite forms of confrontation as the queue jumper is in the wrong and everyone else in the queue is on your side. Shouting "BACK OF THE QUEUE MONKEY!" is very invigorating and I recommend everyone try it at least once.

[Heng]

From what I've seen most farangs will get all loud in places like KFC and Big C, but usually sit quietly like good little school children in places like immigration and most district offices.

[anothertorres]

when this happens to me, i bottle up my anger until i get home and roll 2 doobies just to relax. good music usually helps heal the wounds too... the new Miike Snow album does the trick.

[jasreeve17]

From what I've seen most farangs will get all loud in places like KFC and Big C, but usually sit quietly like good little school children in places like immigration and most district offices.

It's alright for you with your extensive body of staff and high level connections (those Tuk Tuk mafia boys...). Us lot have to look after ourselves...

Anyway, how would you know what goes on in Big C???? Go there often Heng?

[Jingthing]

In Pattaya at least, I have seen some improvement in this with 7-11 clerks. I have observed on numerous occasions the clerk noticed the jumper and served the correct person. Perhaps they are being trained that way.

[Heng]

From what I've seen most farangs will get all loud in places like KFC and Big C, but usually sit quietly like good little school children in places like immigration and most district offices.

It's alright for you with your extensive body of staff and high level connections (those Tuk Tuk mafia boys...). Us lot have to look after ourselves...

Anyway, how would you know what goes on in Big C???? Go there often Heng?

Yeah, if remaining in a perpetual bent over position means "looking after yourselves," knock yourself out...

Of course I've been to Big C, I'm a man of the people, ...just not for the people.

[Moonrakers]

In Pattaya at least, I have seen some improvement in this with 7-11 clerks. I have observed on numerous occasions the clerk noticed the jumper and served the correct person. Perhaps they are being trained that way.

To their credit, Quite a few 7-11's seem to train their staff to tell queue jumpers to wait their turn.