Tag Archives: energy conservation

TGIDST: Daylight Savings Time and the Fortunate Few

Daylight savings not just so farmers have an extra hour of sunlight in their workday.  It’s not just based on needing to use less candle light (energy).  Daylight savings time helps some other people, too.

What about the bar owner who can serve Jager bombs for an extra intoxicated hour?  Daylight savings time helps him make more money in the fall.

What about the posturing apartment manager who can leave a memo on the elevator reminding us to set our clocks back and have a pleasant weekend? Daylight savings time helps him look like he’s doing a good job.

What about the fortunate ones like me who never set an alarm, but choose to wake up with the sun? Daylight savings helps us get started earlier.

But since very few people can empathize with a shrewd bar owner, or an incompetent apartment building manager or a guy who proudly quit his day job, why are we still doing daylight savings time?  Studies show it actually causes a 1% increase in energy consumption a decrease in public health.

What if daylight savings time was a choice? But instead of setting your clock back, how about just scheduling breakfast back an hour?

Could there be an easier way to decrease energy consumption and improve public health?

I bet there are several lobbyists out there who have some ideas.

Do I really have to crank tonight?

Energy is abstract.  It powers lights, appliances, cars.  And even though we pay an electric bill, utilities bill and cash to the gas station, energy remains abstract.

That is, until we think about having to hand-crank a generator.

Thinking about energy like this is valuable.  No, lights aren’t powered by a guy cranking a generator anymore.  But the energy required to power the lights is the same or more.

Why not turn off some lights, especially in corporate office buildings.  So many of them stay on all night.

C’mon.  Let’s give the guy hand-cranking the generator a break.