Get rid of Daylight Savings Time?

[RB TexLa]

Poll question: Get rid of Daylight Savings Time?

[Kelly Rupert]

1. Change it to Mac OSX.

Windows is such a pain.

(seriously, what do you mean by that?)

[RB TexLa]

2. By the poll?

I mean do you want to get rid of having Daylight Savings Time or not.

[Kelly Rupert]

4. I meant the "change" aspect of it.

I'm not really sure what options there would be to change it to. Some sort of reverse-DST?

[RB TexLa]

5. That's actually a good idea. I'd much rather have more daylight in the morning

than the evening.

[Speck Tater]

15. Heresy! Why waste good sunshine on the time I'm sleeping? (nt)

[Ignacio Upton]

29. Well I'm a night owl

And I love being able to have long summer nights...but I hate the dark mornings for whenever I need to get up early. I say just move the DST dates back to where they were.

[Clark2008]

37. Considering that most of the population works until 6ish or so,

I'd say you're outnumbered on that one.

I think most people would like to have more daylight once they get off work to get things done.

[RB TexLa]

71. I usually work till after 6:00

You can have daylight before work to get things done.

[Quantess]

3. Let's get rid of Standard Time and keep Daylight Savings Time.

But, definitely, we shouldn't need to mess with our clocks twice a year.

[Lex]

8. Yep.

I can agree with that!

[Tyrone Slothrop]

49. Oh, yeah...

It such an ENORMOUS hassle to change your clocks twice a year...

:sarcasm:

[marmar]

6. I love daylight savings time....

Here in the western part of the Eastern Time Zone, the sun doesn't set until almost 10 p.m. in late June.

[gristy]

9. Me Too! You took the words right out of my mouth.

I luuuuv daylight savings time. When the longest day of the year is also a clear, warm day, I'm in heaven. The longer that day lasts, the better.

[TahitiNut]

20. The key to whether one likes DST or not seems to be outdoor activities and

... where one is located in one's time zone. I love sunshine. Fervently. I'm also a "late starter" not a "morning person." When daylight extends to 8pm or 9pm, I'm in hog heaven - especially since the warmth of the day remains, not like the chill in the morning. It makes a difference. People in Phoenix, for example, who love the outdoors get out at the beginning of the day in higher proportions instead of the end ... if they can. In the SF Bay area, DST fills the foothill parks and open spaces. People are sucking up the additional daylight. That's because it's hot and the morning is more comfortable. In Michigan, we only get about a month, at most, of uncomfortably hot weather. That leaves another 6 months of DST. I love it.

[RamboLiberal]

22. Me too - IMHO that's the one thing this last Congress did right

I can't wait till next weekend and I can get an extra hour of daylight. Means I can actually get some walking exercise in the daylight after work. I'm an evening person not a morning person.

[Decruiter]

7. When did flipping twice a year start? I don't really remember and

I'm about to be fifty. I know it from my teens but not much prior.

[mcscajun]

16. WWI was when it first took hold on a widespread basis, including in the US

but it was standardized in 1966. It was in effect year-round during WWII, and by President Nixon's order, again it was year-round throughout 1974 and early 1975.

The plan was not formally adopted in the U.S. until 1918. 'An Act to preserve daylight and provide standard time for the United States' was enacted on March 19, 1918. It both established standard time zones and set summer DST to begin on March 31, 1918. Daylight Saving Time was observed for seven months in 1918 and 1919. After the War ended, the law proved so unpopular (mostly because people rose earlier and went to bed earlier than people do today) that it was repealed in 1919 with a Congressional override of President Wilson's veto. Daylight Saving Time became a local option, and was continued in a few states, such as Massachusetts and Rhode Island, and in some cities, such as New York, Philadelphia, and Chicago.

During World War II, President Franklin Roosevelt instituted year-round Daylight Saving Time, called “War Time,” from February 2, 1942 to September 30, 1945. From 1945 to 1966, there was no federal law regarding Daylight Saving Time, so states and localities were free to choose whether or not to observe Daylight Saving Time and could choose when it began and ended. This understandably caused confusion, especially for the broadcasting industry, as well as for railways, airlines, and bus companies. Because of the different local customs and laws, radio and TV stations and the transportation companies had to publish new schedules every time a state or town began or ended Daylight Saving Time.
-snip-
By 1966, some 100 million Americans were observing Daylight Saving Time based on their local laws and customs. Congress decided to step in and end the confusion, and to establish one pattern across the country. The Uniform Time Act of 1966 (15 U.S. Code Section 260a) , signed into Public Law 89-387 on April 12, 1966, by President Lyndon Johnson, created Daylight Saving Time to begin on the last Sunday of April and to end on the last Sunday of October. Any State that wanted to be exempt from Daylight Saving Time could do so by passing a state law.

The Uniform Time Act of 1966 established a system of uniform (within each time zone) Daylight Saving Time throughout the U.S. and its possessions, exempting only those states in which the legislatures voted to keep the entire state on standard time.
http://webexhibits.org/daylightsaving/e.html

[AshevilleGuy]

26. April 1967 n/t

[mykpart]

30. Depends where you grew up.

I grew up in Texas, and we did not have Daylight Savings Time until the mid to late 60s. I think that was when it became law nationwide.

[Skink]

10. Localize it.

In Texas when it is hundred at 9pm we don't really need the sun. But then in December we don't need nightime to arrive early. We should reverse and fall ahead and Spring back. In Northern areas there would need to be a different strategy. It wouldn't affect the markets or train schedules etc.

[all.of.me]

11. change it by 30 minutes, then leave it alone! n/t

[Tesha]

39. No!

> change it by 30 minutes, then leave it alone!

No! *THAT* would be a disaster. Most of the rest of the
world at least has the decency to have time zones that
shift be hours, not by half-hours. Tying to figure out
what time it is in Tokyo would be a nightmare if we were
30 minutes out of sync with the rest of the world.

Tesha

[Kutjara]

12. I haven't seen statistics for the US...

...but British campaigners against "Summertime" (the UK equivalent of DST) say that up to 3,000 injuries and deaths could be prevented by simply staying on GMT year-round. Most of these accidents are caused by drivers hitting schoolchildren going to school in the dark.

Now, the UK is quite a bit further north than even the northernmost US state, so the same problem may not arise here, but it's probably worth considering in states that border Canada (in which case, it would have to be done for the whole country, to be practical).

[ChazII]

13. Some of us are lucky

and we don't have to change our clocks.

[EST]

14. If you want to get up earlier and get the day started, just do it.

Don't force everyone else to do it so you will set your alarm an hour earlier.

[mike_c]

17. WTF is up with this poll?

Who in their right mind would want to get rid of daylight savings time? Jeebus! Get rid of standard time, but for god's sake not daylight savings. I LIKE longer days, daylight until 9:00 PM, and so on. I hate short days, early darkness. I'd much prefer the dark in the morning-- hell. it would be dark when I get up regardless-- in exchange for another hour of daylight in the evening. Why does everyone want it to get dark earlier?

[brer cat]

18. People with children waiting for a bus in the dark?

Maybe?

[mike_c]

19. during summer?

:shrug:

[Clark2008]

38. It's dark anyway.

I've heard that argument before, but my son has to be at school at 7:45 a.m. The sun's barely coming up at that time. If he took a bus, which he doesn't, he'd STILL be waiting in the dark, standard time or no.

[wuushew]

42. You are not getting any "free time" out of daylight savings

DST is a willing refusal to accept that the Earth has variable sunrises and sunsets owing to a twenty-three and a half degree tilt of its axis.

Americans have enough sleep problems as it is, and instituting one hour jumps twice a year is not a helpful action. Studies show it can take days to weeks to adjust to changes in sleep patterns.

Add to that that DST has traditionally been pushed by the barbecue and retail industries shows you who stands to gain.

[mike_c]

70. it's all relative-- an extra hour of daylight relative to the end...

...of my workday increases the amount of time for outdoor daylight activities by 25% - 30%. That's a significant improvement in my quality of life. It might not matter to folks who spend that hour sitting in front of a television, but it makes a big difference to me!

[PVnRT]

65. Longer day?

The day is still 24 hours and the period of sunlight does not change.

[mike_c]

69. of course not, but the daylight time after my workday ends...

...is an hour longer, giving me more time to enjoy outdoor activities before it gets dark.

[Bluebear]

21. How about getting rid of STANDARD time!

[piedmont]

23. Keep Daylight Savings Time, deport the "morning people" who hate it.

[AshevilleGuy]

25. Thank you NT

[Ninja Jordan]

24. Keep it. It lowers energy use. (nm)

[trackfan]

27. DST is folly. It's mid-day when it's mid-day, not when the government says it is.

[donheld]

28. Keep Daylight Savings Time -- Get rid of Standard Time.

:bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce:

[area51]

31. Hell, yes.

(Get rid of it.)

[XOKCowboy]

32. The poll shoud be "Which Do We Keep?"

DST or Standard Time. Pick one and stick with it. I like Standard Tim but I don't have kids. IMHO the "waiting for the bus in the dark" excuse is the only valid reason not to keep Standard Time all year long.

Maybe as one post said just move it forward 30 minutes and say the hell with it! :)

[Decruiter]

33. I don't give a s@#@ which way it is decided, just stop the g'd flip-flop!

Leave me alone. Make it one way or the other.

Thank you and in peace.

[SeattleGirl]

34. Keep it, and make it year round!

Living in Washington state, when standard time kicks in, it starts getting dark around here about 4:00 in the afternoon! Blech! I'd rather have a few more hours of daylight.

[JustABozoOnThisBus]

35. I'd change to Double Daylight Saving Time

Bump the clock ahead in March to DST, then bump it again in late April to DDST.

Bump it back in September, then back again to Standard Time in November.

[Clark2008]

36. I think we should change it to DST and leave it THERE.

It's too dark to do anything when most people get home from work/school in the evenings during standard time.

[ecstatic]

40. why is it 3 weeks early this year?

excuse my ignorance, but I haven't really looked into it yet.

[0rganism]

68. energy policy legislation passed in 2005 (nt)

[terrya]

41. Yes. Get rid of it completely.

Indiana doesn't have it. I also believe that Arizona doesn't, either.

DST is nothing but a hassle, imo. Get rid of it.

[Eurobabe]

43. Keep it, and dump standard time!

[gollygee]

44. Daylight savings time is good for the environment

people need to use electric lights less because of it. It's a PITA but I do see the point behind it.

[wuushew]

46. Is it?

Critics argue that the energy savings of DST are overstated, and that DST can sometimes increase energy consumption and peak demand. Also, the rise of air conditioning calls older energy models into question. In 2000 when parts of Australia began DST in late winter, overall electricity consumption did not decrease, but the morning peak load increased.<11> The peak-load increase may have come from the Australian experiment's unusually late sunrise times, but currently there is no clear evidence that electricity will be saved by the 2007 U.S. rule change.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Daylight_saving_time

[gollygee]

47. Well it's something I've read

obviously there is controversy about that. I'm no expert.

[wuushew]

45. Science, aviation and the military all use UTC

if DST is so great why do none of our most hallowed institutions use it?

[Bill McBlueState]

50. yeah, let's just ditch time zones altogether

Put everyone on UTC. That would be a hoot!

When would the sun rise in California?

[Tyrone Slothrop]

48. Who on Earth would want to get rid of DST???

It saves a LOT of electricity, and it means you get more waking hours in sunlight -- which means that working stiffs like me (9-5, M-F) actually get a bit of a chance to enjoy summer.

[azmouse]

51. I live in a area that doesn't follow DST

and it works out just fine. I appreciate not having to change the clocks twice a year. The daylight can progress the way it does naturally; no big shocks with having the sunlight abruptly move an hour earlier or later.
The only inconvenience is on some cable channels when they put on show an hour earlier or later because they are on DST and we're not.

[AbbyR]

52. I don't care what they do with time

but once they do it, I wish they would leave it alone! I HATE changing.

[etherealtruth]

53. Pick a time, any time and stick to it ...

I find the switch to be very difficult

[Nutmegger]

54. Nuke it, I hate long days. [n\t]

[ProdigalJunkMail]

55. we should all work on UTC and just deal with the light level...

or not...

sP

[KansDem]

56. Compromise: Set the clock ahead only 1/2 hour...

Call it something like "Daylight Semi-Savings Time." Or better yest, call it something like "Homeland Security Time" so no one will question it.

[Marnieworld]

57. As an IT person it is ruining my week

They should not have changed anything unless the software developers could write it into their code first.

Such a pain in the ass to deal with all of the different updates for all of the calendar dependent products, determining in which order to install them, coordinating it across a network. Gggrrrrrrr.

[terrya]

58. No shit.

This bullshit is yet another reason to get rid of DST. It's been a royal pain in the ass so far.

[RedStateShame]

59. Let's change it to December 2000 and un-do this whole shitstorm

Hell, as long as we're making up new time, let's make it work for us.

[cooolandrew]

60. Bad idea, the story is in the title we'd have less daylight if we didn't flip times.

Plus it helps the farmers so, yeah, it's slightly inconvienient but practical.

[all.of.me]

67. i worked on a farm long long ago.

i asked the boss what he thought about the time change. he said it didn't matter. he worked from sun-up to sun-down and then some. the clock and time had nothing to do with it. daylight hours did.

[hedgehog]

61. OMG - did someone tell all the personal computers that we're

witching over to DST early this year?!?!? It'll be Y2K all over again!!! I get dibs on the canned peaches!

I really would like to stay on DST year round.

Either that, or make everybody start work an hour earlier.

Or to really screw things up, let's all get up an hour earlier in the summer.

[porphyrian]

62. I don't really care one way or the other.

One hour doesn't make my life any easier or more difficult in most cases.

[Megahurtz]

63. YES! Scrap It!

It's Bullshit!

Intrusive, inconvenient, unnecessary and it makes for nothing but Jet Lag.

[karlrschneider]

64. I'd be happy with it all year around.

;-)

[PVnRT]

66. Can it

It's useless in the 24-hour world that we live in, and the supposed environmental benefits are questionable at best.