November means a double wallop of darkness: rainy days and the arrival of dusk at 3 p.m. — or at least really long shadows by mid-afternoon.
I’ve been trying to get outside for a daily bike ride, but early nightfall feels like an obstacle to exercise and wellbeing — that’s been shown in the data; people start cycling less with earlier sunsets.
Only a quarter of Americans want to keep changing the clocks. And a clear majority (at least among people who care) want to keep daylight saving time year round.
So why do we persist in falling back? And why are we stuck with 4:30 p.m. sunsets next month?
Why!? — it’s more of a complaint than a question.
The Idea To Save After-Work Daylight
In the 1895, a New Zealand entomologist wanted more spare time to collect bugs after he finished his day job.
Who’s not responsible? American Founding Father Ben Franklin. He proposed something similar in a satirical letter, though he was more into “early to bed, early to rise.” The farmers are also not responsible; they opposed the time changes initially. The change disrupted their animals' routines too. (I noticed this year the pets too seemed impacted — by us getting up later and the resulting delay in their breakfast.)
During World War II, the United States used a permanent daylight saving time. It could happen again.
Near Misses
Nineteen states, including Oregon, have passed some kind of legislation to keep daylight saving permanent. That would require Congress to permit states to make the change. And Congress got unexpectedly close to doing so:
In 2022, the U.S. Senate passed a bipartisan bill (co-sponsored by Oregon Sen. Ron Wyden) to allow daylight saving time to be made permanent — and President Trump, during his first term, said he’d sign it. But then it didn’t pass the U.S. House.
Oregon’s law also only went into effect if California and Washington adopted permanent DST: our neighbors to the north went for it; our neighbors to the south did not. But maybe it’s time to try again.
(A City Cast Portland podcast guest made the case for canceling daylight saving completely, if you want a different perspective. If we were on standard time year-round, the sun would come up at 4:21 a.m. in June. And it would rise before 5 a.m. for 97 days. That seems like a lot of daylight to miss.)
No More Switching the Clocks
It’s clear the time change is stressful on the human body. There’s a documented increase in heart attacks and strokes with the time changes.
When Should the Sun Rise?
Permanent daylight saving time would mean mean sunrise after 8 a.m. for three and half months during winter. I think we could live with that. True, the morning commute will be darker for many people, including schoolchildren — which is what ended the last attempt at permanent DST. On the other hand, the sky getting dark early is associated with a less safe commute and more crime.
📲 Your turn: Do you feel strongly about the time change — and the dreary darkness? Please email me with your thoughts.
