Readers & Legislators on Daylight Saving Time
In the Sunday Poll nearly half of you felt Daylight Saving Time (DST) is no longer necessary, but more than half support it or are indifferent. In the news the next day:
Rep. Mike Kelley of Lamar is sponsoring a constitutional amendment that would ask voters whether Missouri should use daylight saving time all the time.
Under his measure, Missouri residents would switch to daylight saving time in March 2017 and never turn their clocks back again. (Missouri House panel considers eliminating daylight saving time)
A voter-approved constitutional amendment? While I’m one of those who is indifferent to DST — I can see the pros & cons:
PROS:
- Conserves Energy
- Maximize Natural Daylight
- Reduces Exposure to Artificial Lighting
- Lighting Effect on Individual Performance
- Prevents vitamin D Deficiency
- Increases Sunlight Effect on Cardiovascular Illnesses
- Reduces Light Pollution
- Reduces Traffic Accidents
- Reduces Rolling Blackout “Load Shedding”
- Deters Criminal Activity
- Increases Consumer Spending & Business Benefits
- Extends Daylight Leisure Time
- Extends Daylight for Outdoor Work
- Increases Specifically Halloween “Candy” Sales
- Benefits Indoor Ecosystems Benefits Travel & Tourism
- Serves as a Reminder to Change Fire & Smoke Detector Batteries
CONS:
- Energy Conserving Deemed a Myth
- Effects Health & Healthcare Devices
- Effects Psychology
- Disturbs Sleep Pattern
- Electronic Malfunctions
- Criminal Effects on Vulnerable Population
- Effects Financial Markets
- Effects Personal & Professional Logistics
- Effects Farmers’ Morning Productivity
- Ineffective In Equatorial Regions
- Increases Road Traffic
- Effects Commuting Between Time Zones
- Effects Television Networks
- Timekeeping Challenges
- Effective Only During Mass Observance
- Observance Varies Between Regions
- Ineffective Daylight Savings Researches & Studies
To read more on the above points click here. The following are the poll results:
Q: Is Daylight Saving Time Still Necessary?
- No, daylight saving time is no longer aiding energy conservation. 17 [48.57%]
- I’m indifferent. It’s only an hour’s difference. 14 [40%]
- Yes, because it’s engrained in our society. 4 [11.43%]
Hopefully in a week or two my brain will have adjusted to DST.
— Steve Patterson
I’m sometimes confused by your poll wording. In this particular poll, you presented the original question: “Is DLST still necessary?” Then you offered three choice–all presented with qualifiers. For example, the “yes” option’s qualifier is “because it is ingrained in our society.” If I were one who supported DLST for another reason–and not because it may or may not be “ingrained in our society”, would I still vote “yes”? Or, if I found myself opposed to DLST only because it may adversely affect my sleep patterns and not because of any impact it may have on energy conservation, would I still vote “no”? If I’m “indifferent” for a reason other than “It’s only an hour’s difference”, would I still respond as “indifferent”? In your initial post, you provided a link to a list of “pros and cons.” Readers would consider those items when responding to the poll with a simple/non-qualified “YES”, “NO”, “INDIFFERENT”.
Yes, in hindsight I should’ve done that — as I said in the original post I copied the poll from the site Accuweather (http://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/poll-daylight-saving-time-begins-spring-forward/43399102). I agree that qualifiers can complicate things. Thanks for the feedback.
I wish our legislators would stop with the grandstanding, nonsensical bills and focus instead on transportation issues, education funding, and other social services.
Agreed!
“Affects”
And why another constitutional amendment?! This is not a critical issue that needs to be enshrined in the constitution, just pass a damn law (or not)!