Time in Indiana has always confused me, and debates concerning about what time it should be has lasted for as long as I can remember. Spring forward began last weekend, and like so many Hoosiers I have my own opinion on the matter. I was just beginning to enjoy the sunrises and now like a solar eclipse they are gone. I know I will see the sun again on my way to work in a few more weeks, but I have to admit that I am getting a little anxious for spring. Recently, a child was struck by a vehicle on his way to school, and many people are pointing the finger at daylight savings time.
Jalen Lee, 13, was crossing Marr road located in Columbus Indiana just after 7 a.m. when he was struck by a pickup truck. Many residents are blaming the time change for this accident, and are fearful for the lives of their children who have to wait for the bus in the dark. In March of 2008, much of Indiana made the switch to Eastern Time Zone, which involved changing the clocks every fall and spring. The switch, and the argument that is in debate, is that Eastern Time allows for more sunlight, however the grandfather of the child that was struck the Monday after the time switch occurred, argued that is was the lack of sunlight that caused this accident.
Daylight savings time is basically the practice of advancing standard time by one hour in the spring of each year and of setting it back by one hour in the fall in order to gain an extra period of daylight during the early evening, according to dictionary.com. I always assumed that this time adjustment benefited farmers, but that may or may not be the case. Some farmers see DST as a huge inconvenience because they must adjust their schedule and selling of their crops to those that observe DST and other farmers see the advantage of the extra sunlight during the evening when it’s time to harvest.
I do not foresee this debate ever really resolving itself. My personal take on the issue (for whatever that is worth) is that when children’s lives are at stake and it can be resolved by a simple stroke of moving the clock forward or back, then maybe that is what we need to consider.
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