When I moved to California back in 1990, one of the many things I encountered for the first time was this bi-annual clock setting business. Coming from Indiana, where “Daylight Savings Time” was happily not observed, I thought it was ludicrous then, and I still do. I was proud to point out to my left-coast friends, who love poking fun at the mid-west, that Hoosiers at least had sense enough to leave their clocks alone, at the time one of only 3 states to do so.
Ten years later, I had moved back to Indiana, relieved on many counts, not least of which being that I could leave my multitudinous clocks in peace. But that relief was short-lived, as lo and behold, on April 29, 2005 (some bonehead lawyer/legislator — keen on extending his time on the golf course — having inflicted this illogical waste of time (as it were) upon Hoosiers who neither wanted nor needed it), Mitch Daniels (the weezel) signed DST into law. To be fair, the stupidity of this decision pales in comparison to that of most other Daniels decisions, but so what? The fact is, at this time of year (and as Hoosiers like to describe it), “we have an hour stolen from us by the government”, and have to waste a lot of time adjusting all the various and sundry clocks that have proliferated in our lives in recent decades (with of course the exception of our computers, tablets and smart phones, which fortunately have the good manners to change themselves without a reminder).
Now some will argue that by “springing ahead” this time of year that an hour isn’t actually stolen, merely borrowed until 6 months later, when it will be given back (sorta like taxes, and with no interest accruing). This is of little comfort or significance, in my opinion. For the sake of allowing the elite more tee-time (people who could afford hiring someone to adjust 1000 clocks for them), the rest of us are saddled with this bi-annual chore that’s both annoying and totally unnecessary in any practical sense.
Time zones I can see — DST, i.e. a time zone within a time zone — no. When the revolution comes, and liberty is restored to the people, one of the things I hope to see restored is freedom from daylight friggin’ savings time.
</rant>
