The US Endeavour for Eternal Sun-Time
Time. A construct manipulated globally in the turn of the clocks which for us Brits, saw a spring forward at the end of March, welcoming British Summer Time. An end to the January blues, the February fears and the March middle ground, the extra hours of sunlight boosts moods by increasing serotonin intake. So why not cement these effects? Carve them into a stone mandate and inscribe them onto the political agenda.
This is the mindset of American politicians. Why not keep the clocks changed? A short year ago, the Sunshine Protection Act passed through the US Senate with the aim to permanently set clocks an hour ahead of standard time. Committing to summer timekeeping would result in an extra hour outside in the evening – forever. The West coast is unsurprisingly onboard with sunny states like California voting to keep Daylight Savings Time (DST) to squeeze those valuable last drops from their bright evenings. Across the country, the East is in agreement. Senators Patty Murray and Ed Markey are driving passage of the bill in their chamber where it remains held at the desk, awaiting committee approval before heading to the House of Representatives.
While senators crack out their golf clubs left, right and centre, Chris Stewart (House Rep) is ready to tee off and project the Daylight Savings ball through the legislative process. “Let’s steal that hour back” he tweets, eager. In January this year, he introduced his own bill with the same objectives in an attempt to get the theory off the desk and into the President’s practical palm. Here, it could see the final rubber stamp of approval, to make the bill law. To change time.
It’s safe to say the ball of eternal sunshine is well and truly rolling with Murray-Markey motion steering its path.
But, typical America is playing a capitalist hand here. More yogis meditating in a longer dusk is of course not the key influence for agenda-setting in the Senate. With 55% of its citizens preferring to barbeque in July, extending evenings will bring huge revenue to the already booming BBQ industry in the US. Likewise, outdoor activities such as golfing and driving see a huge rise in profits in the summertime. While they can’t control the weather, more leisure time in the sun will draw people to these activities, dollar bills in hand.
The economic benefits are a clear incentive for enacting this law but what does this mean for your average Chad?
Seeing green may leave politicians blind to the impact this change could have on mental health. The DST train will race through the short night, dragging its drained passengers to an early start as “troubling trends” in sleep patterns take their toll, says the highly regarded Sleep Foundation. During the turn of the clocks, sleep deprivation soars. The culprit? Disrupted circadian rhythms.
This is our natural bodily cycle that orchestrates the tune of our energy levels, singing a soft tenor into the night before bursting into a soprano at the day’s wake. Changing the natural course of time will inevitably set these rhythms offbeat. Sleeping patterns will falter. Insomnia will persist. This can only be a detriment to American lives!
Overseas, our government feels citizen welfare is more important than a couple of extra quid. We don’t see the boost in outdoor industries to the same extent as the US. For us, the only financial benefit is minor energy savings as indoor lighting usage drops. Therefore, Britain’s concerns about invoking similar policies don’t lie with the money-motivated head but with the home. The family home.
In 2019, European parliament devolved the timekeeping tug of war to national governments which the UK resisted. Conservative MEPs defied the notion of playing God, arguing that although pushing the clocks forward would cause brighter evenings, it also promises a later dawn. A later dawn that plunges the school run into darkness.
Ultimately in the UK, the financial benefits are unjustified compensation for the everyman effect: children across the nation would be forced to get to school in the dark if British Summer Time was made permanent. Pitch dark. Where criminals can roam behind the mask of the lingering night. The aching dawn would only stretch its lazy arms after a relative lie in, at 7am instead of 6 for example. Safety in suburbia is a uniquely American trait that us Brits don’t have. Yes crime still thrives across both nations in light and dark mornings but by design, picket fences protect. US suburbs bubble wrap kids on their daily commute.
So, the issue of child safety feels truly British. We rely on the clocks falling back again to brighten their wander to school. Conscious of this, our government refuses to follow America forward in time. We’ll stay loyal to our change, pinging an hour ahead as we did only a few weeks ago and regaining this hour in the autumn.
Without the fear of putting kids at risk, Senators leer over the economic gains cementing Daylight Savings will produce. But can money in Polly Politician’s pocket justify the cost to the individual American’s daily life? To their sleeping pattern? With the law predicted to come in this year, it seems November holds the answer.
Image Credit: Hannah Spruce
