Daylight Savings

[alexxkay]

...happens this weekend. In the US, anyway. Australian daylight savings happened last week, moving us from 8 hours out of synch to 9. Next week, it'll be up to 10. Scheduling conference calls has become a lose-lose situation. Ah, the joys of international development.

Why do we have daylight savings time, anyways? I've never heard an explanation that struck me as remotely rational...

Comments

[alexx-kay.livejournal.com]

So, why don't we just stay on this "Daylight Saving Time" thing year round? It doesn't seem from that site like it would *lose* us anything during the winter months, and it would be hella simpler.

My favorite quotes from the site:

"I don't really care how time is reckoned so long as there is some agreement about it, but I object to being told that I am saving daylight when my reason tells me that I am doing nothing of the kind. I even object to the implication that I am wasting something valuable if I stay in bed after the sun has risen. As an admirer of moonlight I resent the bossy insistence of those who want to reduce my time for enjoying it. At the back of the Daylight Saving scheme I detect the bony, blue-fingered hand of Puritanism, eager to push people into bed earlier, and get them up earlier, to make them healthy, wealthy and wise in spite of themselves." (Robertson Davies, The Diary of Samuel Marchbanks, 1947, XIX, Sunday.)

"When questioned as to why he didn't simply get up an hour earlier, Willett replied with typical British humor, "What?" "

[metahacker.livejournal.com]

I believe that it's because that would mean many more people would be driving in darkness in the winter, leading to accidents (groggy drivers are bad drivers, and in fact the day after DST starts has a significant accident increase), children waiting at bus stops in the dark, etc.

I find it nearly impossible to stay in bed after the sun has risen. I have to get to bed earlier in the summer, because the sun will get me up earlier. So it's a real issue for some.