This is of course the weekend when we “spring forward” with a mandated time change an hour ahead, requiring people to set their clocks and effectively lose an hour of sleep (unless you work grave shift, and effectively leave work an hour early). And this inspires a lot of bitching and memes like:
Not bad, actually.
There is an article in Vox about this, with a lot of miscellaneous trivia, such as: “No, it’s definitely called ‘daylight saving time.’ Not plural. Be sure to point out this common mistake to friends and acquaintances. You’ll be really popular. “
Why do we need Daylight Saving Time, and what exactly is it saving? Historically, it was made a national rule during World War I as a means of both saving energy (as opposed to using fuel in the night time hours for heating and light) and expanding the workday (for war purposes). But the reason we then switch back to Standard Time is that as the daylight decreases, farmers who have to work earlier will be more likely to start their day in the dark. So, much like only voting on Tuesday, daylight saving time is a legal custom that has nothing to do with the Constitution or sacred principles and is intended to cater to a small farmers’ community (that part which has not been swallowed up by megacorps) which now has the same modern technology and transportation as everybody else.
The thing is that while most of the people who complain about Daylight Saving Time want to get rid of it altogether, I’m of the group that would rather get rid of Standard Time and make DST year round.
I have several reasons for this.
It’s Arbitrary. The very premise of the government setting time when the daylight hours naturally change with the season means that we’re setting a limit that is not directly related to nature. The reasons for changing in the first place had to do with energy conservation, and since the 1910s the rule has been changed more than once, usually for energy reasons. DST was actually year-round during the last three years of World War II. The fuel shortages of the 1970s led to another mandate of year-round DST from 1973 to 1975. Once that ended, the “standard” for Standard Time was the last weekend of October to the first Sunday in April. In 2005, President Bush signed another one of those “energy saving” measures to extend Daylight Saving by a full month, which means Standard Time is now a month less. The period of Standard Time is now starting the first Sunday in November and ending the second Sunday in March, roughly four and a half months (depending on the calendar). And what that means really, is that Standard Time isn’t actually the standard.
The irony being that various studies (like the ones cited in Wikipedia and the Vox articles) have not shown a meaningful difference in the amount of energy comparing each time zone. Which means that there are more intangible considerations as to whether to keep Standard Time, such as:
It’s Becoming Obsolete. Much of the reason that people continue to use energy in both the “light” and “dark” mornings is that more people, not just farmers, are working other than a 9-to-5 schedule. One of the reasons cited for keeping Standard Time – the prospect that school kids could get in accidents during dark mornings – is less relevant as school days are made longer and in many cases are started later. This also means that they end later, just as a lot of adults’ work days end later, which means that Standard Time means they have less daylight hours of outdoor activity, which touches on my last point.
SAD. Seasonal Affective Disorder is a real thing, in some cases physiological and related to the production of Vitamin D (which is naturally produced in high sunlight) or melatonin (which is regulated by Vitamin D and more likely to be produced in darker conditions). Again, the yearly cycle naturally leads to a loss of sunlight in any event towards the winter solstice, and arbitrarily hastening the natural dark period may be affecting the likelihood of people developing SAD.
Traffic. It just so happens that at the time of year when we artificially shift the hour back, it gets dark at just before 5 pm – that is, rush hour. And the last thing we need in Las Vegas is to give people an actual excuse for not knowing how to drive. Because people who were able to get out of work on rush hour Friday at 5 pm and drive home then get out the next Monday at 5 pm and drag ass on the freeway at 20 miles under the speed limit going, “Oh No! It’s dark outside! I CAN’T SEE!!!”
Well yeah, dingus. That’s what headlights are for. Try using them. AND your turn signal.
So I say, let’s just throw out Standard Time and make Daylight Saving the year-round standard. You would have to give up an hour of life – this time for good – but at least you wouldn’t have to go through the same rigamarole again next year.