A minor issue, but one worthy of some debate, I think.

Just a few hours ago I had to set the clocks back an hour. Six months from now I'll set them forward an hour.

To be debated:Does this whole twice-a-year ritual make any sense in this modern world anymore? Why or why not?

Yes it does. I'm tired of sending my kids to school in the dark. I also wouldn't want to have less daylight after dinner during the summer when they're out playing. Makes things quieter around here

It's just a change in the Earth. It doesn't really become a bad thing. It's something one must do.

At first I thought AMF must live a lot farther north than I do, but now I understand the issue is that we are both close to the East/Central time line.

I do not like this switch because here in NAshville it makes the day end so early. If my kids are going to be caught in the dark in either the late afternoon or in the early morning, I would rather have then in the dark of the morning. (Less crime)

I do not like daylight savings. I say we hold a national or international convention and split the difference. Move it to the half-hour in the middle and leave it there. Arizona doesn't do time changes and they seem to be doing all right.

I am in full agreement with Eeyore. The time change is awful for me. My children have sleep issues and are up before five with the new time.

In the summer, it's light until around nine in the evening here, actually too light-too long for me. A nurse I went out to dinner with last night told me that she hated working the 13 hour shift during the time change. She wasn't even compensated for the extra hour, according to her, and I can imagine that would be annoying. I feel the same way as a parent having to rise before five in the morning!

I found this interesting:

Why do we set clocks back and foward?



Sounds weird i know.

On the other hand, when Daylight Saving Time goes into effect in April, I don't suppose she complains too much about working only 11 hours, and still getting paid for 12, now does she? If she's only being paid for what her timecard says, she is getting a one hour beneift in the spring, and a one hour deficit in the fall. That means she's actually getting paid exactly what she should over the course of the year. No more, and certainly no less.


Except you're not. When we move the clock back in the fall, we are returning it to the "correct" time, if you will. It's the change in the spring that's artificial, not the change in the fall.

However, it is a pain to have to do this every six months, especially in my house, as my wife collects clocks of all kinds. We have about 60 that need to be changed over, and it takes most of the day.
So, leave it on standard time, or leave it on daylight savings. I don't care, just pick a time, and leave it!

The time change is a good thing, in terms of providing more daylight
at the end of the workday (in the Spring), without the use of electricity.

In the Fall, I like setting my clock back. It is my favorite season, and I do
not mind the day getting darker earlier. It's a nice change from the
summer atmosphere of longer days.

But the only shift effected by the time change would be the overnight shift. In order to receive her full pay that nurse would have to turn down a shift change to hours she may prefer, if she was offered that shift change during daylight savings time.

On an off topic note, I remember an old "Ma and Pa Kettle" short I saw once on the subject noting that nature doesn't care what the clock says and farmers have to get up at dawn no matter what the clock says.

Well...of course, she wouldn't. The difference is, most people she works with foresee the daylight savings time and opt out of the day they'd gain an hour (it's usually a three day workweek with 12 hour periods for a nurse). OTOH...they would fight to get the day they'd lose an hour but still get the pay. I'm willing to bet it's usually seniority that wins and the others lose out (work the extra hour and don't receive the extra hour) overall.

Babies schedules take a LONG time to secure (as I'll bet you know ) therefore, whenever there's a time change it pretty much effects me. I DO, in fact, lose an hour in the transaction. The baby doesn't know the time change is 'artificial'...I'd like to just stick with one time because it's easier for me.

Goamerica's post about the energy savings was interesting, though. If it does save energy overall, I understand the reason behind the time change (although it certainly doesn't save electricity in my house, as my children are up before the sun).

I have seen it suggested elsewhere that we make daylight savings time permanent - year-round, globally. In terms of energy conservation, this seems to make sense. And even those on time zone borders would at least have a bit of consistency - none of this switching back and forth twice a year (and no long shifts for nurses ).

Having worked as a nurse for many years, a few of them on night shift, I'd have to say that the time switch is disruptive. Further, electricity is used at any time of the day or night regardless of what the clock says.

Why don't we just pick a time and leave it that way?

I'll have to reply in one hour, when my internal clock catches up with me....

I think it should be kept as EST,MST or PST and quit messing around. Man has always felt he has to make things better.

As for the energy conservation. If we would adapt some of the technology available in the automobile arena, we could save more than 1% a day.

But that would hurt the oil companies and big money and we can't do that.

Someone always seems to use the explanation that daylight savings is like the (insert ethnic group) person who wants a longer blanket, so they cut a foot off one end and sew it on the other end.

The only group that I ever saw defend daylight savings time consistently were the golfers. That "extra hour of daylight" each day was very important to them!


I've worked those shifts where an extra hour was inserted, and was paid for that hour at time and a half, shorted an hour six months later. I still came out with an extra half hours pay if I happened to catch both shifts. To get 24/7 coverage, 168 hours a week, someone usually has to work 48 hours every week; and this is often accomplished by having people rotate their days off to share the burden, working the 48 hour shift every 4 weeks or so. Twelve hour shifts would seem to result in alternate 36 and 48 hour work weeks. The point I am trying to make is, the person working the extra hour now might not be the same person working the short shift in six months. It is not fair that she is not compensated (if true) for the extra hour, and she may want to see if it is legal! If she is paid hourly, she should be paid for total hours worked!


In Michigan at least, when we had year round daylight savings time, one of the major objections was that it was too dark when children had to leave for school in the winter. Drivers didn't always see children waiting for school buses!

Well, for as long as we have maintained that for half of the year we are on "Daylight Savings Time;" I have tried to maintain that for the other half of the year, "We are on Daylight Spending Time!"

(Now, If my atomic clock would only reset itself as it is supposed to do, all of my clocks would be telling the correct time!)

As discussed in another thread, Solar Explosion, Heading towards Earth, there was a lot of potential damage expected as a result of electromagnetic storms resulting from flare-ups on the Sun. The one that was supposed to start hitting us yesterday was the third largest recorded flare in modern history. I braced for the potential power outages, satellite failures, and airplanes crashing to the Earth that were beginning to be predicted by the same prophets that brought us Y2K and the Biblical Prophecy interpretations that the end days are at hand...

And then it happened...

My Atomic clock finally reset itself to the correct time this morning!