I can't help thinking people who oppose time changes are likely the ones who oppose vaccination and masking and signs that warn you to be careful on the ice. They probably resist anyone setting a time mandate. If they cannot establish their own time, at least the govmint should be prevented from setting it.
There was an op-ed against time changes in the Toronto Star yesterday. It suggested if you like longer evenings you should get up earlier, it and breezily declared, "There is a great degree of agreement that we should abandon the time change altogether."The author is described as a "retired solutionist." Wondering what a solutionist might be, I found this:
This fixation with all things tech, the idea that every difficulty we might come across can somehow be ironed out with a technological solution, has recently been dubbed solutionism.
Sounds about right. A simple fix for everything.
Update, March 17: Jared Milne responds:
I just caught your piece on clock changes, and I resent the implication that just because I don't like it I'm on the level of anti-vaxxers and anti-maskers (jokingly, of course.) It just seems like a silly, pointless exercise that doesn't contribute anything of value.
The whole 'get some extra daylight' rationale doesn't make sense in much of Canada. Living near Edmonton, I'm used to waiting for the school bus or driving to or from work when it's still pitch-dark at 7:00 AM or 4:30 PM even with the time changes. Not to mention that according to Wikipedia Saskatchewan and the Yukon don't use it at all, and with the way daylight works up north it's entirely pointless in the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
So, does it make more sense in other parts of the country?
All good points, for sure. I should acknowledge that my perspective is shaped by, among other things, being an old geezer who does not often have to get up early in the morning but still likes a long summer evening. And Jared is right that that anti-vax stuff is a mean joke.
I find myself thinking of how much latitude may influence views on this. Anywhere from Florida down to Rio, day length does not vary so much between winter and summer, but my latitude 44 perspective on winter darkness is not the same as Jared's at latitude 54.
