November 08th, 2022

Ready for my annual rant?

So the time changed again over the weekend.  I'm sure you noticed.  And like most people, I am not happy about it.  To be fair, this is the change that gives us an extra hour of sleep (in theory) which I suppose, makes it marginally better than the one the leaves us one snoozy hour short.   I didn't actually get the "extra" hour becoz my own personal body clock woke up at the same time it always does. I'm sure I'm not the only one. 

Like any good little humans who have absolutely no choice, we did what we are supposed to do and adjusted any clocks that do not automatically adjust themselves and now we will spend the next few weeks trying adjust ourselves to match. Grrrrrr.    I noticed how dang dark it was last night when I finished cleaning up from dinner .  It was 6:14 exactly, full dark outside and I am NOT happy!

In the past week the news feed on my computer has posted many articles and commentaries regarding the issue of Daylight Savings time, both pro and con.  I actually read a few.   Here are the top three pros and cons:

• Pro 1. Daylight Saving Time's (DST) longer daylight hours promote safety. ...
• Pro 2. DST is good for the economy. ...
• Pro 3. DST promotes active lifestyles. ...
• Con 1. Daylight Saving Time (DST) is bad for your health. ...
• Con 2. DST drops productivity. ...
• Con 3. DST is expensive.

Let's address these one at a time:

PRO 1:   Daylight Savings Time promotes safety.  Hmmm.  I would like to see the stats from Arizona and Hawaii - the two US states that do not observe DST to see if that is honestly true.  If it is true, it's only true in the morning because since it's darker earlier at the end of the day, wouldn't it be less safe out then?  What about places that have months of darkness, like say...Alaska.  Do they notice a lot less safety going on in their darker months?  I am dubious of this claim.

PRO 2:  DST is good for the economy.  In what way?  Because we are using less power when it's light out?  Well, once again,  that only applies to the morning.  I see only a shift in the time of day when the extra power is being used.  

PRO 3:  DST promotes active lifestyles.   Once again, if you go running or biking, outside,  early in the day then I suppose yes, you would be more likely to do it in the lighted part of the day.  But if you generally get your aerobic exercise at the end of the day and it's darker  earlier, then perhaps not.  Or maybe you do your workouts at the gym in which case, it makes no difference at all. OR you don't run or bike at all in which case....moot!

CON 1: DST is bad for your health.  A Resounding YES!~  When people go to work in the dark, work inside all day and then come home in the dark, that just cannot be healthy.  Same for kids going to school.  Most of us appreciate the light.  And all of us need the natural Vitamin D that comes from exposure to the light. So there!  To say nothing of the fact that the loss of sleep from adjusting to the time change is never a good thing. Ever.

CON 2: DST drops productivity.  What?  The exact opposite of the Pro claim?  Interesting.    You mean to say that people who are sleep deprived and lacking natural exposure to light are less productive?  Well that is shocking, simply shocking (not). That is certainly not promoting a healthy lifestyle either is it!

CON 3: DST is expensive.  Once again, the exact opposite of the Pro claim.

What does this tell us?  Well mostly that a smart person can take the number collected by any poll and tweak them to suit their own purposes.  

The fact is that reports state that at least 70% of Americans do not want a time change anymore.  And yet we still have one.  It isn't as if it were a simple matter of just everybody in each state getting together in one place, raising their hands to indicate that the no longer wish to observe DST and then somebody counting those hands and the majority wins.  Nope.  It's much much much more complicated.  Why?  Because it has to go to congress.  Sigh.

The state of Florida actually did petition to stop observing DST way back in 2018.  And the bill languishes, waiting for someone to actually move it forward while we wait, bleary eyed and cranky.

We aren't the only ones either.   Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, Idaho, Louisiana, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Washington and Wyoming are also patiently, or perhaps not so patiently, waiting.

And if it actually (eventually) happens that the law is finally in place (hurrah!), it will be another full year before we can stop changing the clocks twice a year.  But it will be a huge step forward.

And you know what?  I'm not even certain which is the real time?  Was the the real time before this weekend when we "fell back"?  Or is it the real time now?  Either way, I don't care.  Just fix it, for heaven's sakes.  Pick one and stick with it!!!!!