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“It drives people crazy”

Posted in:

• Illinois

* Dave Dahl…

The twice-a-year changing of the clocks – as Daylight Saving Time ends this weekend, giving us an extra hour – would come to an end, if some Illinois lawmakers have their way.

“It drives people crazy,” said State Rep. Mike Zalewski (D-Chicago). “Parents with small kids are affected, and you’re physiologically affected, so i would be for one way or the other” between Standard Time and Daylight Saving Time, as long as Illinois sticks to it year-round.

The argument for this rests not only on removing an annoyance but also on health grounds. At least one lawmaker, State Rep. Tim Butler (R-Springfield), says he would prefer Standard Time year-round, so people could get to school and get to work after sunrise.

Complaining about Daylight Saving Time is like complaining about the weather as long as nobody who actually runs things also takes up the cause. But I’d much rather “fall back” than “spring forward.” Gives us an extra hour of sleep.

posted by Rich Miller
Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 9:57 am

Comments

1. == “It drives people crazy” ==

   Like we need MORE crazy.

   Comment by sal-says Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:02 am

2. I strong dislike fall back. Sunset at 4:30pm is horrible.

   Comment by Three Dimensional Checkers Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:07 am

3. Prefer DST so there is light later in the evening. Don’t care if it is dark going to work.

   Comment by Captain Obvious Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:08 am

4. Are we on Standard Time now and changing to Daylight Savings Time on Sunday or vice versa? What is the rationale for engineering the day to create more daylight in the morning hours versus the evening hours?

   Comment by Jacob Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:12 am

5. I don’t mind the change, but if we go to one over the other, I’m with those preferring more light in the evening.

   Comment by lake county democrat Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:14 am

6. Spent the night in Michigan earlier this week. With Eastern Daylight time now, sunrise is after 8 AM. If standard time were adopted year-round, kids would be walking and busing to school around 8 in Illinois.

   And if we stayed with Standard Time permanently, sunrise around June 21 would be at 4:30 AM, with sunset around 7:30.

   Status quo is good.

   Comment by bogey golfer Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:15 am

7. I don’t care which one we use, after a week everyone will be used to the new rhythm. Whether it gets light at 4 am in the summer or dark at 3 in the afternoon in the winter also wouldn’t bother me. Then again, the current system doesn’t bother me. I’m one big “meh” on this.

   Comment by Perrid Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:16 am

8. I prefer more light in the evening. I have long work days with a commute, so it’s generally dark coming and going whatever timne we’re on this time of year.

   Comment by Dog Lover Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:20 am

9. Been through 140 of these changes. No big deal.

   Comment by zatoichi Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:21 am

10. We have a toddler and we’ve been slowly pushing her bedtime back all week so she doesn’t end up waking us up at 4:30am on Sunday. Time changes are pointless. Pick one and stick to it.

    Comment by DHS Drone Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:23 am

11. Wow must be a reeeeally and of course we are so blessed to know Butler thinks of this. Have a great weekend

    Comment by Annonin' Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:25 am

12. It’s awesome when you have a small child and they wake up at 6 am rather than 7 am on “fall back” day…

    Comment by LakeCo Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:27 am

13. “Don’t care if it is dark going to work.” As Bogey Golfer pointed out, kids walking to school in the dark is another matter entirely.

    Comment by Skeptic Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:34 am

14. On central standard time, June sunrise in Chicago would be at 4:15 am, with sunset at 7:30. 5:15 sunrise is already (IMO) a huge waste of sunlight, 4:15 would be awful.

    If we went to standard time all year, I’d badly want to be on Eastern time—December would be Sunrise at 8:15, sunset at 5:30.

    Comment by Chris Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:34 am

15. yes please leave it as now and don’t change it. makes watching early Premier League matches easier.

    Comment by Amalia Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:35 am

16. I’m for not changing time at all — unless someone learns to communicate with dogs to understand it.

    Comment by Arguenda Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:40 am

17. I prefer more light in the evening, but I don’t like children walking to school in the dark. Just keep it the way it is.

    Comment by Wensicia Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:40 am

18. For the kids walking to school in the dark crowd-

    Kids aren’t out after five in the afternoon where you live?

    I grew up in a very different neighborhood, apparently.

    Comment by Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:45 am

19. I can change my starting time at work. 7:45, 8 or 8:30 with my Bureau Chief’s permission. Business owners and School boards can change their opening times when they want. However I find this mass clock change to be an absurdity which clearly shows how out of touch are our elected officials.

    Comment by Al Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:45 am

20. In a logical world, Illinois would be in the Eastern time zone, but y’all ain’t ready to have this conversation.

    – MrJM

    Comment by MisterJayEm Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:47 am

21. I drive east in the morning and west in the evening for my commute. This means I am driving directly into the sun a few weeks out of the year when the timing is bad. Just when I get past that window of time, the clocks change and I have to do it all again. I am not a fan.

    What if we went really crazy and split the difference? We could just “fall back” 30 minutes and leave it there. That would really mess with all the rest of the various time zones and daylight savings time policies.

    More realistically, the clock should be synchronized with the noonday sun. Noon should be when the sun is highest in the sky. I haven’t looked at the charts to see which time system more closely matches this.

    Comment by SomeGuy Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:48 am

22. Rich, you want comments?

    How about tying the time change to say, FOID card legislation.

    Now that’s a story.

    Comment by Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:57 am

23. @ Flyin’ Elvis - As a member of “the kids walking to school in the dark crowd” I must point out that kids aren’t legally required to be anywhere at 5pm. They are required to be standing on street corners waiting for buses or crossing streets to walk to school in the morning (and kids around my town start their “commutes” at 7:15) - which will be very dark if we stay on daylight savings time throughout the winter.

    This “issue” is bogus. DST was extended several weeks a few years ago. Let’s move on.

    Comment by Hyperbolic Crowd Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 10:59 am

24. ===In a logical world, Illinois would be in the Eastern time zone==

    This is accurate.

    Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:00 am

25. Hyperbolic Crowd-

    The fact that they aren’t legally required to be anywhere in the p.m. doesn’t change the fact that they are.

    Are they somehow more safe on a dark street in the afternoon?

    Are commuters not returning to work in the afternoon?

    Comment by Flyin' Elvis'-Utah Chapter Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:04 am

26. Always great to see bipartisan opposition to change.

    Comment by Michelle Flaherty Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:06 am

27. ===Rich, you want comments?===

    Not those.

    lol

    Comment by Rich Miller Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:09 am

28. === In a logical world, Illinois would be in the Eastern time zone ===

    == This is accurate. ==

    You’re both wrong. In a logical world, Indiana and Michigan would be in Central time. Eastern time is too far over. Eastern time has encroached too far into the Midwest. This aggression will not stand, man!

    To the post, the correct solution is to either fall back a half hour now or spring forward a half hour later, and then never speak of time changes again.

    Comment by Leap Day William Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:11 am

29. This week NPR had a piece on switching to Daylight savings time for the entire year. One of the guests mentioned in 1974 congress passed a law during the fuel crises making DST mandatory for the next two years. After the first year enough people complained they ended the experiment a year early.

    Comment by No relation Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:27 am

30. The best idea I’ve read about time zones is for the US to only have two zones and divide them at the Mississippi river. And then have no time change.

    Comment by someonehastosayit Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:36 am

31. No need for DST in the modern world, where lighting is plentiful 24/7/365. Leave it on Standard Time, and no, Illinois does not belong in the Eastern Time Zone. Some CST Indiana counties EST, and switched back because it made things worse for farming, business, and other reasons.

    Comment by thisjustinagain Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:37 am

32. There was a “time” when the Central Zone stretched all the way out to Ohio… https://www.chicagomag.com/city-life/january-2018/how-chicago-gave-america-its-time-zones/

    Comment by Anon221 Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:50 am

33. @Flyin’ Elvis - Kids get out of school between 2pm and 3:30 - not 5pm. It’s not dark at that time of day. No matter what we do or don’t do to the clocks it will get dark. If we make DST permanent it will be dark when kids are going to school and light when they go home. The status quo lets them go to school and get home in the light of day.

    I think there is consensus that we don’t want the sun to rise at 4am in the summer, so unless we can petition the galaxy to change how it works, let’s keep the CST/CDT dynamic and let’s… move… on…

    Comment by Hyperbolic Crowd Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:53 am

34. I’m for replacing the “Spring forward” with a “Spring back”. That way, we will get an extra hour of sleep twice a year. /s

    Comment by Nick Nombre Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 11:53 am

35. Finally something Tim Butler and I agree on!

    Comment by Furtive Look Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 12:03 pm

36. Whichever time is made permanent, standard or daylight saving, should be permanent year-round. I am definitely in favor of this, and against having to change clocks. It is an extra hassle for everyone, and seems to literally contribute to heart attacks and traffic accidents: https://www.oregonlive.com/trending/2021/11/should-we-permanently-end-daylight-saving-time-studies-conclude-it-would-mean-fewer-heart-attacks-and-car-accidents.html

    Having more light in the morning is probably best, so maybe stick with daylight saving time year-round?

    Either way, the switching should stop. We’re long past the point where it is helpful.

    Comment by Techie Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 12:27 pm

37. As long as we stay “fall back(en)” * — I have no issues. It’s the spring forward that messes with people.

    * Listening to Prine’s ‘Souvenirs’ as I type this, and always love the Chicago specific lyrics ‘…memories can’t be boughten.”

    Comment by Mr K Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 12:33 pm

38. It’s really no big deal. Just one more thing for people to whine about. Leave it as is.

    Comment by Lt Guv Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 1:37 pm

39. Kids walking to school is a different matter entirely. Well sure, my advice to them would be to wear light colored clothing and be extra careful at intersections.

    Comment by Captain Obvious Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 2:38 pm

40. I don’t care if we have it or not. But I do hate hate hate the extension of daylight saving time. It should have ended a month ago. If we’re going to have it, put it back where it belongs. This is a federal thing, so all the GA can do is say we’re going to follow it or not. I would like the GA to just make a decision and shut up about it, but that’s not going to happen either. Grumble, grump….

    Comment by Excessively Rabid Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 3:05 pm

41. “Are we on Standard Time now and changing to Daylight Savings Time on Sunday or vice versa?”

    “The typical implementation of DST is to set clocks forward by one hour in the spring (”spring forward”) and set clocks back by one hour in autumn (”fall back”) to return to standard time.” - Wikipedia

    DST begins in the spring and ends (return to standard time) in the fall.

    Comment by Steve Polite Friday, Nov 5, 21 @ 3:23 pm

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