For:
Whatever happened to the childhood sacrality of dibs? If your stuff is there, that spot is yours and yours only. You snooze, you lose suckers. But let's not forget the trade off here, because in leaving your belongings behind you are putting yourself at risk of some devious licking…so who’s the real sucker? I say it’s fair game at that stage. Besides, there’s a plethora of study spaces across campus so do yourself a favour and go for a wander. Explore. There’ll always be somewhere to sit. Sure, it may not be as comfortable as the consistently occupied booth seating of Central, but unless you’re willing to be the early bird (or a particularly lucky one) you don’t get the worm.
So yes, it’s reasonable to leave your stuff in the library during a lunch break. Even during exams. When you think about it, you’re really doing everyone else a favour by eating lunch elsewhere and minimising disturbance – you’re welcome! What are you gonna do to stop people anyways? A mechanised table with a timed button in the centre that sets off a disposary trap if it isn’t re-activated every 15 minutes? Like we have the budget for that…
And to those of you who get pissy when someone's sitting alone at a large group table, how about you go sit with them? Make some friends, a new study buddy even. With so much extra empty space, I’m sure they won’t mind. Heck, you don’t even have to talk if you don’t want to! Screw unspoken societal laws. The movie theatre seating rules, bathroom stall selection, it’s all in your head! Go exercise that free will! Sit where you want, leave your stuff if you need. Most of all: be more chill.
Against:
The only time it would be worth reserving a seat is the only time when it’s totally inappropriate to do so. If the Link is empty then there’s no need, if the Link is full then you’re being discourteous. “Reserving a spot” is a total farce. The library is a public space and everyone should have access to it. Not just the people who happened to arrive early in the morning before heading off to their classes for hours.
It’s a simple fact of efficiency. When you’re not using a space, why stop others from using it? When did we start thinking that objects and theoretical persons had more rights than actual present people? The people who most need access to seats are the people currently in the library. No, not the people away for an hour long lecture. Not the people taking an extended lunch break. Not the people who’ve ran into some friends and got caught up chatting. To allow “dibs” to preside over present humans is to favour a world of empty seats populated by ghosts and derelict bags.
Of course it’s easy to go find another space. Just as easy for you to find a new space if you go back and find “your” table productively used by some other student in your exact position. Finders keepers? Oh I’m sorry for not respecting your own personal Terra nullius, I had no idea that you were the first to discover 2nd floor Central. The Uni should be a dynamic space – a space that is used and lived in to the greatest extent. Sure you might have to move every so often but clearly you were doing that anyways when you got up. Think of it as an opportunity to stretch your legs and go explore some new facet of campus.