When Congress Kicks You In the Man-Junk

I am, generally, pro-"Anything-Involving-Energy-Conservation," but I am not pro-"Energy-Conservation-Bills-With-Many-Flaws-That-Fail-
To-Actually-Save-Energy"

In 2005 -- y'all may know this, but I sure didn't -- Congress decided to expand daylight-saving time (three weeks earlier and one week later). Theoretically, I like this idea. Theoretically, I am pleased about the reduced fuel consumption. Theoretically, I celebrate the average American dude (or dudette) who has an hour of darkness plucked from his or her daily schedule. This is why daylight-saving time exists in the first place, and you can never have too much of a good thing.

Never.

On the other hand, bunches of energy specialists'll try to kill your fun. They'll cite studies, which fail to demonstrate a correlation between fuel consumption and daylight-saving time. They'll claim that the average American's leisure time is inelastic and unaffected by the change. They'll bring up the western time zones where American dudes (and dudettes) will wake up to darkness and have to use lights in the morning instead of at night.

Furthermore, -- not that I don't relish the occasional kick-to-the-pants for American industry -- you'll get complainers whining about the cost to business: missed meetings, computer updates, et cetera. American-based airlines will sound off about how out of sync they'll be with European carriers.

This last lil' bit is the most interesting to me. Airlines, that is. I had a flight this morning. To Houston. To visit my friend at Rice University. I woke, showered, dressed, packed, ate -- prepared to go. I left on time. On my way out, I got a text message. It was from the future. From an hour ahead. I furrowed my brow. The message, which was an ironic "Have a nice flight!" sentiment from a thoughtful friend, claimed to be from 12:15 PM EST, but my time piece argued it was not nearly that late yet. Only 11:15, in fact. As they silently debated the issue, I recalled a silly article I had read in passing on the BBC or some such thing. About the change to daylight-saving time.

I was not pleased. I rescheduled my flight: 8 AM EST (7 AM in a world of justice). It is 70 degrees in Houston today. It is not in New York today. I am cold and bored and indignant.

Meh, what else is new?