So apparently, Congress has decided that they're going to extend the amount of the year under Daylight Savings Time by two months. Let us count the ways this is a dumb idea.
First, there's the fact that Daylight Savings Time's whole mantra "that you get more hours of daylight" is complete horseshit. An act of Congress doesn't change the shape of the Earth's orbit or the tilt of the Earth's polar axis. There's the same amount of daylight, it's just not necessarily convenient to the exact hours of working stiffs.
Second, why do we need more DST?
Third, imagine the costs of this.... the start and end of Daylight Savings Time has been hardcoded into the locale information of literally millions of computers all around the world. For this to work, they're all going to have to be upgraded to deal with the new date-ranges.
If you want to reform Daylight Savings Time, the reform is to make it go away. Seriously.
I still think it would have just been cheaper and easier to mandate that schools and government offices open at 8:00 instead of 9:00. The ripple effect would solve the problem.
Nah, DST is the bees knees. I don't care that the "real clock" says that the sun comes up at 4am. I _do_ care that it's still light at 9, so I can get some work done outside after I come home.
I do agree, though, that it's going to be a PITA to change the hardcoded DST rules, though.
Wade,
JR's got it right... if the issue is "you want sunlight after you get home", then set your work hours around the daylight.
The world survived for millions of years without it. Civilized peoples the world over survive without it. We are spending millions in tax dollars for the congressional fuckheads to make a decision such as this. WHY have we not solved the national debt? WHY are the terrorists still alive in the mideast? WHY are there homeless on the streets of the U.S.? I don't know, but, I can sleep better tonight knowing that we now have a congressional act to elongate the the day.