It’s Daylight Savings Time again. Once again that time of year has come
about when everyone sets their clocks forward one hour in order to have longer
days. It is observed by Europe and most of North America. It is not
observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and
Arizona in the United States and the Province of Saskatchewan in
Canada. Why do we do this? Those areas seem to get along fine
without it. The common answer I hear is that we are somehow benefiting the
farmers. The farmers I talk to, however, tell me it is more of a
hindrance. They explain that most farmers are used to getting up at a
certain time (Usually at dawn) and going about their business. The “extra
hour of sunlight” we gain in the evening is really just stolen from the
morning. As a result, farmers are actually impeded to a certain degree by
this blessing. Another common misconception is that Benjamin Franklin came
up with the idea. Ancient Romans were adjusting water clocks long before
Ben was around. He did write an anonymous letter when in Paris suggesting
that Parisians wake earlier in the day to use more sunlight and preserve
candles. That’s about as far as his part in this goes. Time was not
even standardized until the 1800s when the railway necessitated a regular time
setting in order to track arrivals and departures. Though several people
suggested one way of advancing the clock or another, the practice was not
adopted until 1916 by Germany and Austria-Hungary to curb the use of coal during
war time. Britain and many other countries soon did the same and the
United States jumped on board in 1918. Not long after the war we did away
with it and brought it back periodically over time. It did not really stay
until the 1970s when an energy crisis caused a desire to use less electric
light. We have used it ever since. Maybe I’m just missing that hour
of sleep I didn’t get last night, but how is this beneficial?
Traditionally retail and tourism have benefited the most from the change.
Later hours mean more business as consumers are more likely to shop late than
early. That’s all well and good but is the change really necessary?
At Christmas time I never seem to have a problem going to the store when it is
dark out. I admit that travel is easier in sunlight but many travelers
leave early in the morning already. The days are already growing in length
as we move toward the Summer Solstice. Why do we keep doing this? I
said it already. The reason is tourism. That, in turn, means
money. More light in the evenings leads vacationers to spend more time
using their money before bed. That’s the secret answer. It’s all
just another way to get more money. The rest of us are just along for the
ride on this one. So when you’re waiting extra-long for that fireworks
display to start because it isn’t dark yet, remember someone out there is
getting a few more sales.
about when everyone sets their clocks forward one hour in order to have longer
days. It is observed by Europe and most of North America. It is not
observed in Hawaii, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and
Arizona in the United States and the Province of Saskatchewan in
Canada. Why do we do this? Those areas seem to get along fine
without it. The common answer I hear is that we are somehow benefiting the
farmers. The farmers I talk to, however, tell me it is more of a
hindrance. They explain that most farmers are used to getting up at a
certain time (Usually at dawn) and going about their business. The “extra
hour of sunlight” we gain in the evening is really just stolen from the
morning. As a result, farmers are actually impeded to a certain degree by
this blessing. Another common misconception is that Benjamin Franklin came
up with the idea. Ancient Romans were adjusting water clocks long before
Ben was around. He did write an anonymous letter when in Paris suggesting
that Parisians wake earlier in the day to use more sunlight and preserve
candles. That’s about as far as his part in this goes. Time was not
even standardized until the 1800s when the railway necessitated a regular time
setting in order to track arrivals and departures. Though several people
suggested one way of advancing the clock or another, the practice was not
adopted until 1916 by Germany and Austria-Hungary to curb the use of coal during
war time. Britain and many other countries soon did the same and the
United States jumped on board in 1918. Not long after the war we did away
with it and brought it back periodically over time. It did not really stay
until the 1970s when an energy crisis caused a desire to use less electric
light. We have used it ever since. Maybe I’m just missing that hour
of sleep I didn’t get last night, but how is this beneficial?
Traditionally retail and tourism have benefited the most from the change.
Later hours mean more business as consumers are more likely to shop late than
early. That’s all well and good but is the change really necessary?
At Christmas time I never seem to have a problem going to the store when it is
dark out. I admit that travel is easier in sunlight but many travelers
leave early in the morning already. The days are already growing in length
as we move toward the Summer Solstice. Why do we keep doing this? I
said it already. The reason is tourism. That, in turn, means
money. More light in the evenings leads vacationers to spend more time
using their money before bed. That’s the secret answer. It’s all
just another way to get more money. The rest of us are just along for the
ride on this one. So when you’re waiting extra-long for that fireworks
display to start because it isn’t dark yet, remember someone out there is
getting a few more sales.
RSS Feed
