Daylight Saving saves nothing

Dear Editor:

Like many other people I know, I was out late Saturday night, partying down, when I suddenly noticed that it was 2 in the morning. Not remembering how two hours had passed without my cognizance, I found myself questioning whether I had, in fact, been drinking, despite my stance to never engage in such activities. Needless to say, I wasn’t able to drag myself out of bed any earlier than 1 p.m. the next day.

I believe that Daylight Saving Time is a blight upon our great nation. Sure, everybody loves being able to gain an extra hour in October; it’s as close as we humans can get to the God-like ability to stop time. But in April, it’s like … it’s like having pages carelessly ripped from the day calendar of our lives!

Daylight Saving Time was the brainchild of Benjamin Franklin, who wrote an essay in 1784 explaining the economic benefit of using natural, rather than artificial, sunlight. Franklin is, of course, the same guy who came up with the idea of flying kites during electrical storms, a practice which greatly reduces the ability for one to continue living. And considering his disposition toward satire, he was probably kidding about this Daylight Saving thing anyway.

Suddenly changing time in the middle of the night hurts more people than it helps. People with sleeping disorders have trouble adjusting to the sudden loss of nighttime and the earlier appearance of sunlight. Farm animals have difficulty dealing with changes in their daily routines, which affects agriculture. And it directly conflicts with some religious observations. So, who exactly does “springing forward” and “falling backward” help, other than gymnasts?

To the United States of America I say, let us stand up against this antiquated method of dealing with the natural shortening of daytime! We should all observe the example of the great state of Arizona, which has steadfastly refused to participate in this stupid ritual for decades!

Jonathan Dewbre
Junior English major