Daylight No-Savings Time

Talk about bad timing, psychologically. Much of the country has been suffering from a heat wave this summer. We've witnessed triple digit temperatures, melting parking lots, and record air conditioner use. So, what does Congress do to cool us off? They pass a bill that would add four additional weeks per year of extra sunshine. Couldn't they have passed this act during the dark and cold winter?

What they're doing as part of the new Energy Bill is extending Daylight Saving Time. Instead of starting it on the first Sunday in April and ending it on the last Sunday in October, from now on it will begin on the second Sunday in March and end on the first Sunday of November. Why? On the surface, it looks like a band-aid and a public relations move. Below the surface, same thing. Since so many experts say this won't really save any significant energy or money, proponents are talking about other reasons we should be excited about the Daylight Saving change. One of the sponsors, Edward J. Markey (D-Mass), said, "The beauty of the bill is that it just makes everyone feel sunnier." I have the feeling that a lot of people this summer feel sunny enough without it.

I've always believed that we do Daylight Saving Time backwards. When do we wish we had more sunshine, in the summer or in the winter? When do we come home from work or school in the dark, in the summer or the winter? Winter is when we could use a little more sunshine, not summer. Why isn't anyone talking about sticking those weeks in the winter, when we have those cold, depressing sunsets at 4:30 in the afternoon?

One positive thing about the change is that Daylight Saving Time used to foolishly end right before Halloween, forcing kids to trick-or-treat in the dark. Now, it will happen after they get dressed up and ring neighbors' doorbells. I'm all for that. But this could have been accomplished just by moving the date a few days, not by adding two weeks.

Speaking of children, guess who's against adding these weeks? The National PTA and other educational groups fear that the additional darkness in the mornings created by the extra-sunny afternoons will force kids to wait for buses or walk to school in the dark. These groups fear that kids and darkness are a bad combination.

The airline industry objected to the additional weeks, saying it would disrupt schedules and cost millions of dollars. I hope this won't cause the airlines to cut back on still more frills. What are they going to get rid of next? The rough Kleenex in the bathroom?

Since it's not certain at all that the extra daylight weeks will save much energy, and since so many people are against it, who is behind this movement? Is it the Short Sleeve Shirtmakers Union or the sunglasses lobby? Is it the powerful sunscreen cartel?
One view is that by throwing in the Daylight Saving Time clause and making folks smile at the idea of more sunshine, the lawmakers are distracting us from the more important aspects of the bill. This is the height of cynicism, like believing that President Bush announced his choice for the Supreme Court just to push all the Karl Rove investigation stories off the front page.

So, let's take a little look at it. The Energy Bill is 1,724 pages long, which seems like a huge waste of energy – how many lawmakers do you think read every page? It does not require automakers to improve the fuel efficiency of cars, so the gas-guzzler will remain the single biggest oil user. Senator Pete Domenici (R- N.M.), who championed the bill, acknowledged that it will not lower gas prices or affect oil imports in the short term, but feels we'll see the benefits in five or ten years. Ten years? And while it authorizes $10 million to encourage people to ride bikes to work, it provides $12 billion in tax breaks for energy companies. The good news is, with all the extra sunshine, maybe it will throw some light on the kinds of bills Congress passes.

By Lloyd Garver