Daylight Saving Time: Should It Be Abolished? (VV #3)

[AiliailiA]

What do you mean? How does setting the clock forward and then back keep us in synch with the planet's rotation?

Setting the clock forward and back keeps it so our waking hours have more daylight in them. Without it our time would eventually not correspond to daylight at all.

You're thinking of leap seconds.

It would take tens of thousands of years for the clock to get completely opposite to the daytime, without leap seconds. We could have basically ignored this problem for a thousand years, and the sun would only be coming up 20 minutes earlier by the clock. I think it's more that astronomers use time (right ascension) to specify the co-ordinates of celestial bodies so they wanted it corrected each year.

Even that wouldn't be a good reason to introduce leap seconds NOW. Computers could easily adjust celestial co-ordinates on the fly. But we have the leap seconds and they don't bother anyone. Your watch (phone, etc) may be wrong by one or perhaps more seconds on July 1 each year, until such time as it checks in with an internet time server and corrects itself.

[United North Atlantic States]

If you live in Europe, on Sunday you'll probably have to update a few clocks (or at least get used to having the time changed).

What do you think? Do you support DST or do you hate it?

Your opinion? Hmm?

My opinion is that it's completely useless and nonsensical, thus it should be abolished at some point in the future.

[Sarigen]

Definitely. There's an increase in car accidents, insomnia, and the fact that it costs the economy millions of dollars. It was a nice idea, but not a very good one... it should really be abolished.

[The Unified Nevadian Colonies]

Non-daylight savings time should be abolished.

[95X]

Most of North America already switched on March 8th this year. Maybe the only positive lasting Bush 43 policy.

I also think we should keep the Pacific Time Zone on GMT -7, Mountain Time on GMT -6, Central Time on GMT -5, and Eastern Time on GMT -4, which is where they are during DST. It actually encourages me to do something with the evening hours, rather than feel like I need to hurry home since it'll be dark soon.

And for those who don't like DST, there's always most of Arizona and Saskatchewan, and other countries that don't have it.

"Easier for kids to get safely to the bus stops by shifting the clocks so the daylight is earlier/later/whatever!" - Anybody seriously trying to claim this has no knowledge of what it is like taking the bus to school, because you cannot shift the clocks enough to make that work, not when kids probably have to be up and out there well before first light if they want to make it to school on time.

One school I attended began classes at 7:40 AM. Due to "scheduling" (translation: we claim we can't afford to hire another bus driver) my bus stop time was 6:45 and I had a 45-minute bus ride despite living a mile away from school. It wasn't going to be light enough at 6:45, no matter what.

[United Russian Soviet States]

It should not be abolished.

[Atlanticatia]

DST makes life so much better. It should just be permanent. I hate those days in the winter when it's dark at 4pm..

[AiliailiA]

Non-daylight savings time should be abolished.

Well there's a problem with that.

The Northern hemisphere and the Southern hemisphere have their daylight savings time opposite ways around. At a time of year which is near the equinox, Southern nations move their clocks forward while Northern nations move their clocks back. About six months later, they each do the opposite.

Then there is the matter of timezones. What a clusterfuck.

The whole world should use the same time. UTC perhaps, but I don't mind using UTC-3 if that's what a referendum of world citizens decides should be the standard.

[AiliailiA]

It should not be abolished.

Please expand on your opinion. Please say something like "it should be left up to the states" so I don't have to admit that I agree with United Russian Soviet States about something.

[United Russian Soviet States]

It should not be abolished.

Please expand on your opinion. Please say something like "it should be left up to the states" so I don't have to admit that I agree with United Russian Soviet States about something.

It doesn't really matter very much.

[Greater-London]

Every single time the clocks go forward or back we end up having this debate - people forget that not having daylight saving's time was attempted (in the UK at least). The experiment was abandoned early because it was unpopular and a disaster.

If we had summer time all the time in this part of the world it wouldn't get light in the winter till 9/10 and it would only be light till around 5/6. I don't think children going to school in the dark sounds like a good idea!

Some parts of the world don't need it. We definitely do.

[Idzequitch]

Please expand on your opinion. Please say something like "it should be left up to the states" so I don't have to admit that I agree with United Russian Soviet States about something.

It doesn't really matter very much.

In other words, you hold an opinion, but you can't/won't explain why you hold it. That doesn't necessarily make you wrong, but it does rather invalidate your argument.

[Narland]

History of Tinker-Time according to my G-gramps Bosche (He was an excellent story-teller who passed on in the early 70s at a ripe old age so imagine it being said by an old curmudgeon speaking in a western cowboy drawl with a slight swiss-german accent noticable on the up-tick:

2nd worst idea the Founding Fahter's ever had right after loosing to Canada.

This bad idea didnt gain traction until the early 20th century when proponents told city-folk tbat farmers wanted it. As if the rooster is going to crow one hour different, or cows are going to somehow want to be milked an hour's difference because it is spring or fall.

Those in the country were told that city-folk needed it to save money on coal as though city folk couldnt get up an hours different if they really needed to.

So state by state country folk thinking that city folk were too lazy for their own good, and city folk thinking that the country folk were too stupid for their own good, passed the legislation in deference to their "poor" cousins in that other place.

Repeal idiocy--get rid of Tinker-time. Vote for me and you can set your watch to whatever time you can afford.

________

Regardless, the purpose of standard time is to standardize it. Changing it twice a year defeats the purpose. Instead of messing with society, give those who want to change (open their stores an hour earlier or an hour later) the freedom to do so, and leave the rest of us alone by not changing the clocks.

[Grenartia]

I can't think of a single good reason to keep it. Please, somebody kill it with fire.

Yes. It absolutely killed my performance at work, due to losing that hour of sleep. Plus, why the fuck do we call it "standard" time when we're only on it 5 months of the year?

[Grenartia]

Non-daylight savings time should be abolished.

Well there's a problem with that.

The Northern hemisphere and the Southern hemisphere have their daylight savings time opposite ways around. At a time of year which is near the equinox, Southern nations move their clocks forward while Northern nations move their clocks back. About six months later, they each do the opposite.

Then there is the matter of timezones. What a clusterfuck.

The whole world should use the same time. UTC perhaps, but I don't mind using UTC-3 if that's what a referendum of world citizens decides should be the standard.

Nah, timezones make sense. That way, in most situations, you know what time the sun will be up, and what time it'll be down, wherever you are in the world (major exceptions being near-polar areas), just by looking at the clock.

[New Werpland]

I don't mind having 9 being dark in the winter and light in the summer or whatever.

[New Werpland]

Please expand on your opinion. Please say something like "it should be left up to the states" so I don't have to admit that I agree with United Russian Soviet States about something.

It doesn't really matter very much.

Excuse me but most of your posts are relatively short. Does that mean they all don't matter?

[United Russian Soviet States]

It doesn't really matter very much.

Excuse me but most of your posts are relatively short. Does that mean they all don't matter?

It either matters or not in the eyes of the reader.

[Allancia]

Daylights Savings Times, as far as my information goes, was first proposed by Benjamin Franklin as a means by which to allow farmers and other manual laborers to work for longer hours, and in turn allow them to work shorter hours later on, during certain periods of the year, as days/nights get longer as the year progresses etc. However, now that most heavy labor is automated, or performed by skilled technicians who operate heavy machinery, it is really obsolete.

[Arumdaum]

it wrecked my sleeping schedule

[Nazi Flower Power]

Well there's a problem with that.

The Northern hemisphere and the Southern hemisphere have their daylight savings time opposite ways around. At a time of year which is near the equinox, Southern nations move their clocks forward while Northern nations move their clocks back. About six months later, they each do the opposite.

Then there is the matter of timezones. What a clusterfuck.

The whole world should use the same time. UTC perhaps, but I don't mind using UTC-3 if that's what a referendum of world citizens decides should be the standard.

Nah, timezones make sense. That way, in most situations, you know what time the sun will be up, and what time it'll be down, wherever you are in the world (major exceptions being near-polar areas), just by looking at the clock.

People would adjust if we switched to using UTC for everything worldwide, and I think once everyone got used to it, it would be less confusing.

[AiliailiA]

Nah, timezones make sense. That way, in most situations, you know what time the sun will be up, and what time it'll be down, wherever you are in the world (major exceptions being near-polar areas), just by looking at the clock.

People would adjust if we switched to using UTC for everything worldwide, and I think once everyone got used to it, it would be less confusing.

There are good arguments both ways. If you want to phone someone up, you still have to consider whether it's night or day where they are so their timezone can tell you that easily. On the other hand, air travel across timezones is very confusing and when people screw it up they can arrive on the wrong day.

I like to watch international cricket. I greatly appreciate that the website gives the start times of matches in local time AND in UTC. The clock of my computer is set to UTC, so I just subtract the start time from the number in the corner of my screen and see the match started an hour and a half ago.

[AiliailiA]

Please expand on your opinion. Please say something like "it should be left up to the states" so I don't have to admit that I agree with United Russian Soviet States about something.

It doesn't really matter very much.

That's an acceptable comprom-- d'oh!

[Dakini]

Ether have daylight savings time or standard time .
But this switching back and forth is nuts .

Twice a year? I daresay all your electronic devices take care of it for you. So maybe you reset a couple of analog clocks. Big deal. I personally like long summer evenings.

Then maybe DST should be the new standard. Moving clocks forward in the springtime causes more traffic accidents and bad decisions in workplaces brought upon by additional sleep deprivation for the week following the shift (the first Monday back to work is especially bad). This is what happens when you take people who are already sleep deprived and give them one less hour of sleep.

Also, it sucks to go from waking up with the sun coming up to waking up in the dark when you're just starting to get hopeful about the season.

[Dakini]

I like it. These people who don't because they lose sleep and get all fucked up from it just don't have any toughness.

Or they're like most people and already sleep-deprived.