Petition to end DST - From Woot

[Artimid]

Greetings,
So I saw this post on Woot (I only do the deals side, sometimes .. rarely.. they have something good) and saw this in their community: https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/end-daylight-savings/Vqmj9z6D

This is something that has actually bugged me for a while, and not just because I work overnights and lose/gain an hour each year, unpaid (my place doesn't appreciate me putting 12 hours when we leap back, instead of 11). I just didn't think to use a petition to let the government know how useless I felt it was.

So, figured there might be some more here who dislike it and might want to sign. It will probably be answered with a "We see what you did there... but Ehhh, we don't wanna" response, but at least it will be something.

 

[cb91710]

I kinda' like it.
It's dark when I leave for work anyways, so it gives me an extra hour of daylight when I'm off work.

The transition is a pain, and personally I'd just go DST all year, but I know that's not going to work for every state.
Seriously, we actually need one more time zone in the ConUS, and Alaska needs to implement 3.

 

[Rockminer]

I know DST was initially implemented to conserve energy, but I think it's a good idea for kids who go to school. I would rather sacrifice an hour of daylight, in the evening, so kids who ride the bus can wait in some amount of daylight. I look at it as a safety measure.

 

[Artimid]

As it stands now, I have the sun in my eyes when I go home as it comes up, and the sun in my eyes as it goes down when I drive to work. I wouldn't mind so much if it was either down or up when came home.. or at least night directly in my path.

Also, it is important to consider that AZ doesn't follow it, and several portions of other states don't, so business wise it is a pain in the neck. Now, I certainly prefer waking up and going to work in the dark, so I wouldn't mind if that was the standard. I just hate the flipping, as there is no reasonable excuse for it. When Bush signed the plan to move the days around, that should have been the end of it. And, as I said, my place of work tries very hard to wiggle out of paying me for the hour we jump back, saying that the time says I was on the clock for only 11 hours. More than happy, however they are, to not pay me for the 10 hours when we jump ahead... heh.

As for one other time zone, I wouldn't mind that and I haven't ever been to Alaska but.. for the size, yeah. As someone who basically exists on just the East Coast with dealings mostly with AZ (who doesn't change), I have no opinions on if we need another as I haven't really been in any other part besides EST.

And yes, Rock, I agree on that. While as a kid I enjoyed being out in the dark, that was simply because of the area I lived. If more cars were passing by, I would certainly enjoy some sunlight to give evidence that a small group of children were standing on a street corner.

 

[jumper]

Saskatchewan doesn't observe daylight savings time, but every 6 months there is a debate. Go figure. The farmer thing is just wrong it was more about burning lights.

 

[Artimid]

Gotta preserve those candles.

I didn't realize that Canada even had DST. I mean, I figured all 5 people just got together and whoever said a time first got dibs on the rest of the season. I guess it makes sense though, Canada is technically a country.. hrm. Learn something new every day.

 

[inspiringK]

You are pretty far South, so the difference in daylight time changes less for you. Further North, I appreciate the effort of DST.

This is something that has actually bugged me for a while, and not just because I work overnights and lose/gain an hour each year, unpaid (my place doesn't appreciate me putting 12 hours when we leap back, instead of 11). I just didn't think to use a petition to let the government know how useless I felt it was.

So, there is also a day in the year that you work an hour less?

 

[Artimid]

You are pretty far South, so the difference in daylight time changes less for you. Further North, I appreciate the effort of DST.

So, there is also a day in the year that you work an hour less?

Yup, sometimes. I am not always scheduled for the jump forward day, but last year I was. For that day, I dock my pay an hour because I wasn't here.. which should be simple enough, they never mind paying me less. When I added the hour during the leap back, however, they changed my time-sheet. I reverted, they changed again, etc until I went and spoke to them about law and proper pay for time worked. So when we leap back, I gained an hour, leaped ahead I lose an hour.

Also, I suppose that further north that extra hour of daylight during the afternoon might make a huge difference as you can be home during the day. I didn't think of that. It is difficult to try to consider from every point of view, and sometimes I don't realize when I am only thinking in the scope of my own perceptions, but in that case then ending DST but staying on the current schedule where you get the extra hour would be better. Remember, DST is just a legal thing, the planet doesn't adjust and the day is still the same. We are artificially changing things to "save electric."

 

[Hunter]

Gotta preserve those candles.

I didn't realize that Canada even had DST. I mean, I figured all 5 people just got together and whoever said a time first got dibs on the rest of the season. I guess it makes sense though, Canada is technically a country.. hrm. Learn something new every day.

Standard Time was invented in Canada actually. I hate DST, a pain in the *** every six months.

 

[inspiringK]

Remember, DST is just a legal thing, the planet doesn't adjust and the day is still the same. We are artificially changing things to "save electric."

This seems complicated and confusing.

 

[Artimid]

You laugh, but I have actually had to teach people that. Students when I was working at school, and co-workers who thought that surely it was caused by the days changing and the government had nothing to do with it. I had a guy in a Geology class in college start an argument with me when I mentioned it was to save energy and was started by Edison (granted I might be off on this after looking again at the history in Wiki.. I figured it was by Edison to save candles), and he laughed saying they didn't have electric back then.

So, sometimes I take a chance to remind people that DST isn't natural, just laws.

 

[seattleshaver]

I certainly would like to see DST go away. Is it important for it to be light at 10 pm in the summer until of only until 9 pm?

When time standard time starts again in the fall is it necessary for a sudden jump in darkness from 6 pm to 5 pm? Much better for everyone for there to be the natural graduation change.

Most of the reasons for it originally are now probably negated to the point that it's a wash. It's either light longer in the morning or in the evening, electricity is either saving in the morning and increased in the evening or vice versa.

 

[cb91710]

I certainly would like to see DST go away. Is it important for it to be light at 10 pm in the summer until of only until 9 pm?

That's why Arizona doesn't do DST. They're at the far western end of Mountain time, just as you are in the western end of Pacific... add your latitude and it makes for a late sunset.

I remember in the 70s when Nixon decreed that it shall be DST all year along with the 55mph speed limit. Dumb idea because during the winter it simply shifted the energy usage to mornings, and forced children to walk to school in the dark.
Right now, sunrise in LA is at about 7am... with DST it would be at 8am.

 

[John Von Wuggz]

As a resident of AZ we ignore DST and I love it.

 

[BBrad]

I've never minded going to work in the dark but I sure hated coming home in the dark at the end of the day . . . so I kind of hate STANDARD time and would do just fine with DST all year long! Living where I do in northern New Hampshire, it is dark around 4:15PM in December. On the other hand, in the southwest corner of the time zone in December it is just about sunrise at 8AM, and one cannot argue the safety aspect concerning school children. If Eastern Time was shifted ahead by one-half hour and remained "standard" all year, I could probably live with that. The rest of the time zone would probably not be happy.

Time zones were created along with railroads and telegraphs. Prior to that, each locality kept its own time relative to the position of the sun . . . like with a sundial. The need for time standardization came about with railroads and railroad schedules, and the ability to synchronize times throughout the zones needed the telegraph for instant communications to ensure that when it was 10AM in New York, Chicago set their clock at 9AM.

I believe DST was created along with the 40-hour work week and the desire to shift our leisure time later in the daylight period during the warmer months. Instead of working 8-to-5 we could work 7-to-4 and accomplish the same thing . . . but we are creatures of habit who resist change and moving the clock hands to make it artificially later is easier than just changing our schedules in the first place. Likewise, changing our habit by eliminating DST doesn't work either as we found out years ago during an energy-saving "experiment" that saved neither energy nor daylight.

As to farmers . . . our dairy farmers up here in NH don't like it . . . they say the cows can't tell time and get all messed up twice a year when the time changes and they try to milk them at 3AM . . .

 

[Phog Allen]

Put me down as another hater. And Jim will not have to bear another of my yearly rants! DST is a large pita. And look, back when it started the last week of April and ended the last week of September it was at least bearable. It changed close to the autumnal equinox so with twelve hours each of day and night most adjusted pretty quickly. Now it starts in the middle of March and does not end till November. And for the various reasons mentioned above I cannot stand it. Mostly because of the artificially late sunsets here in cattle country when high summer hits. Standard time was developed by the rail systems of the world about 150 years ago. And it bloody well worked. Leave it be.

Cheers, Todd

 

[Toothpick]

I just don't care to be honest with you. I've observed it my whole life and the "adjustment" doesn't even matter to me. plus or minus one hour? big deal. The only time i ever think about DST is when i have to change the clocks. considering all that's going on DST should be the last of our worries. it certainly is mine.

 

[cb91710]

I've never minded going to work in the dark but I sure hated coming home in the dark at the end of the day . . . so I kind of hate STANDARD time and would do just fine with DST all year long! Living where I do in northern New Hampshire, it is dark around 4:15PM in December. On the other hand, in the southwest corner of the time zone in December it is just about sunrise at 8AM, and one cannot argue the safety aspect concerning school children. If Eastern Time was shifted ahead by one-half hour and remained "standard" all year, I could probably live with that. The rest of the time zone would probably not be happy.

Time zones were created along with railroads and telegraphs. Prior to that, each locality kept its own time relative to the position of the sun . . . like with a sundial. The need for time standardization came about with railroads and railroad schedules, and the ability to synchronize times throughout the zones needed the telegraph for instant communications to ensure that when it was 10AM in New York, Chicago set their clock at 9AM.

I believe DST was created along with the 40-hour work week and the desire to shift our leisure time later in the daylight period during the warmer months. Instead of working 8-to-5 we could work 7-to-4 and accomplish the same thing . . . but we are creatures of habit who resist change and moving the clock hands to make it artificially later is easier than just changing our schedules in the first place. Likewise, changing our habit by eliminating DST doesn't work either as we found out years ago during an energy-saving "experiment" that saved neither energy nor daylight.

As to farmers . . . our dairy farmers up here in NH don't like it . . . they say the cows can't tell time and get all messed up twice a year when the time changes and they try to milk them at 3AM . . .

100% spot on... except for the farmer thing.
I always thought that farmers and construction workers ignored the clock and did what needed to be done when it needed to be done (barring local time restrictions on noise and construction activity).
Regardless of the physical "time", from watching traffic during my commutes, it seems that construction vehicles are very consistent with respect to the relative ambient light level and not so much the 6-5 schedule.

 

[Doc4]

Standard Time was invented in Canada actually. I hate DST, a pain in the *** every six months.

Time zones were created along with railroads and telegraphs. Prior to that, each locality kept its own time relative to the position of the sun . . . like with a sundial. The need for time standardization came about with railroads and railroad schedules, and the ability to synchronize times throughout the zones needed the telegraph for instant communications to ensure that when it was 10AM in New York, Chicago set their clock at 9AM.

"Daylight Savings Time" was first proposed by George Vernon Hudson, born in England and spent his adult life in New Zeeland. His original proposal (in New Zeeland, in 1895) was for a 2-hour shift.

The concept of a "time zone" was first used in England in 1847 for establishing standard railway time throughout the country. New Zeeland (hey, them again!) followed suit and the US was not far behind, and actually had time "zones" rather than one single nation-wide "time".

Where the Canadians come in, is Sir Sandford Fleming, who is credited with "inventing" and bringing to fruition a worldwide series of time zones

 

[Doc4]

I didn't realize that Canada even had DST. I mean, I figured all 5 people just got together and whoever said a time first got dibs on the rest of the season. I guess it makes sense though, Canada is technically a country.. hrm. Learn something new every day.

Your numbers are way off. You need about two dozen guys for a decent hockey team, two teams to play each other ...