Opinion: Daylight Saving Time has got to go

Daylight Saving Time perma- nent later in 2023. The Sunshine Protection Act would put an end to the biannual “Spring Forward, Fall Back”. The fact that it passed unanimously in a divided Senate is testament to the frustration felt over the years about the fluctuating time.

Each time we change the clocks forward or back, it disrupts the relationship our brains have with the sun, according to The Washington Post. When we mess with this relationship, it throws off our internal clocks, making it difficult for our bodies to adjust to the new time difference, leading to a lack of sleep.

The American College of Cardiology states studies have revealed that there is a 25% increase in heart attacks on the Monday directly following the “spring forward” in March and a decrease of a similar measure in the fall when the clock goes back again

One more recent study by The National Library of Medicine points to an increase in hospitalizations for atrial fibrillation following the spring time change.

The spring back also brings a 16% increase in vehicle and deer collisions, according to a recent study.

Back when DST originated, it made a lot more sense. In 1918 the Standard Time Act was created and enforced in an effort to save fuel costs during the first world war. A recent paper published in the International Association for Energy Economics stated that as society grew, lighting accounts for only a 0.34% savings during the days in which DST applies.

Daylight savings was started to save money, but now it actually costs us instead.

According to the Lost-Hour Economic Index, DST costs the US economy $434 million in lost production and medical expenses.

The Air Transport Association estimated that DST cost the airline industry $147 million dollars in 2007 due to confused time schedules with countries who do not observe the time change.

People just do not want to work when they are tired. The Monday following the spring time change is actually called Sleepy Monday in light of it being the most sleep-deprived day of the year. When workers are tired, they are more likely to slack off throughout the day.

The fall time change comes with less daylight later in the day which leads to an 11% increase in depression - which decreases productivity. When people say that they like daylight saving time, what they are really saying is that they like longer and brighter days. They like spending time outside with their friends just hanging out. They like summer. It makes people grumpy, tired, and the economy loses money in the process. So let’s just get rid of it already. lwhittaker.roundupnews@gmail.com

While the future of Florida’s Stop Woke Act is still up in the air, to say it will damage our education system is a massive understatement.

Not only is the proposal damaging to education, but also to our democracy. It would rewrite history in ways that would make America unrecognizable and more divisive than ever.

At the core of what the bill represents is an attack on critical race theory (CRT), an academic term coined by several American legal scholars in the 1970s. It offers a race-conscious approach to learning and understanding systemic inequalities and structural racism.

The irony is completely lost on the politicians who are writing policies like the “Stop Woke Act'' because they believe that instruction grounded in CRT is discriminatory towards white people. The term has been completely twisted and taken out of context to push a political agenda.

The bill would prohibit instruction not only on race relations but it would also diminish African-American contributions to literature, science, music, geography and the arts.

Unless students take a specialized class, they often do not get to learn about stories outside of the white, male experience. Women are rarely mentioned in history textbooks and the stories of the Black experience as it really happened are under constant threat.

It is particularly dangerous because it will not stop in Florida and it will threaten teachings on gender studies, women’s history, LGBTQ+ studies and many other diversity courses.

According to an EdWeek. org analysis, 44 states have introduced similar bills or other steps to limit the teaching of critical race theory and other such discussion of race, racism, and sexism. 18 have already enforced bans or restrictions through legislation or other avenues.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis has already proposed another bill, popularly known by detractors as Don’t Say Gay, which forbids instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity for all grades in Florida.

A similar bill was passed in North Carolina this week which limits what teachers are allowed to discuss when it comes to race.

Classes that teach diversity, equity, and inclusion are essential in creating an empathetic society and accurate view of our country’s history. Without this inclusive approach to teaching about our collective and varied experiences, we end up with a very white, male expression of who we are as a country.

All Americans want to be free to share their stories, to be recognized and respected. “We The People” means all people, not just the ones that fit within certain parameters. America has a dark and complicated past that cannot be ignored. The problem began as a racial issue and it has to be solved racially. Anyone who argues that they feel oppressed by critical race theory has missed the mark and still has a lot of work left to do.