It's that time of year where once again we have to adjust all of our clocks ahead one hour in order to 'save' daylight. Frankly, I think it's a pain in the butt as it really doesn't save anything but causes problems across all lines. That begs the question, is Daylight Savings Time really necessary or has it become nothing more than a government imposed annoyance?
Of the two, I think everyone will agree it's more the latter.
A growing number of people are asking the question and not getting any answers.
While Benjamin Franklin is considered the 'inventor' of the concept Daylight Savings Time, it wasn't really used to any extent until the early 20th Century, and then only in fits and starts. It didn't really become a regular thing until the Nixon Administration, and then it was used more as a PR stunt to help offset the effects of the Arab Oil Embargo in 1973 when Nixon ordered DST year round in order to help save oil supplies by shifting sunset one hour. (I say it was a PR stunt because no one ever showed that it saved a drop of oil.)
Other administrations have fiddled with it since then, with the last being George W. Bush asking Congress to extend an already extended DST from 7 months in length to 8 months. It's been there ever since. (I have to ask this – If DST is in effect for 8 months of the year, isn't it really Standard Time as it is in effect for two-thirds of the year? As I commented on the post linked above, couldn't the four months where DST is not in effect be called Daylight Losing Time instead? It would make more sense.)
While a number of people have justified the use of DST with a wide range of positive effects, none of which have been proven out, many of the rest of us see it as nothing more than an annoying phenomenon that forces us to shift our clocks twice a year. If the Powers-That-Be really want to keep the one hour shift, why not make it year round and be done with it? Or if they don''t want to do that, then keep the clocks set to Standard Time and let people and businesses shift their hours accordingly if they feel the need. This twice-a-year shift in our clocks really serves no purpose, is annoying, and in the end, has no real justification.
