Daylight saving time should be abolished!
Daylight Saving Time (DST) is a practice that many countries still follow, despite debates about its necessity in the modern world. At 2:00am on the second Sunday in March and the first Sunday in November, clocks are set ahead one hour in areas that observe DST.
Approximately 70 countries worldwide, out of 195, follow DST in at least a portion of the country. In Canada, the expression "Spring ahead, Fall behind" is used to remember what to do twice a year regarding DST.
Regions that use DST adjust their clocks forward one hour close to the start of spring and adjust them backward in the autumn to standard time. However, some countries, such as Japan, India, and China, do not observe any form of DST, making them the only major industrialized nations to do so.
The European Union voted in 2019 to abolish the twice-yearly clock changes by 2021 after 84% of Europeans favoured ending it. However, the final decision was postponed largely due to the Covid-19 crisis, and individual EU member states have yet to finalize whether to keep permanent summer or winter time.
The United States standardized DST nationwide with the Uniform Time Act of 1966 but allows states to opt out. Currently, Arizona (except the Navajo Nation) and Hawaii do not observe DST because of their geographic and daylight conditions, which make DST less beneficial.
Kazakhstan abolished DST and also made decisions to unify its time zones for convenience, reflecting a broader trend in former Soviet countries to eliminate clock changes to avoid confusion. Many large regions, especially in Africa and Asia, do not observe DST due to their tropical locations where daylight hours remain fairly constant throughout the year.
The main reasons for abolishing or avoiding DST include limited or inconclusive evidence about energy savings, health concerns related to the disruption of circadian rhythms, public preference to avoid the inconvenience and confusion of changing clocks twice a year, and economic interests that sometimes support DST for extended daylight in evenings but are balanced by the societal disruptions and mixed energy impacts.
In Canada, there has been a push to scrap the time-switch, with many people reporting waking up late due to their phones switching to Eastern time one week before the time change. Bell Canada attributed this issue to a software glitch. To set a mechanical clock, move the minute hand slowly clockwise to the correct time, stopping briefly for the quarter-hour on chiming clocks and the half-hour for striking clocks.
Despite the debates and challenges, DST continues to be observed in many countries, including Canada. It remains to be seen whether more countries will follow the trend of abolishing or never adopting DST, as some already have.
Vintage clocks, whether chiming or striking, require manual adjustment when Daylight Saving Time (DST) begins or ends each year, providing a tangible connection to this lifestyle practice. In homes and gardens, vintage clocks serve as timeless reminders of the seasonal shift, adding a unique charm to the home-and-garden decor.
