Instigator / Con
15
1581
rating
38
debates
64.47%
won
Topic
#953

Is Daylight Saving Time Still Relevant

Status
Finished

The debate is finished. The distribution of the voting points and the winner are presented below.

Winner & statistics
Better arguments
3
6
Better sources
6
6
Better legibility
3
2
Better conduct
3
1

After 3 votes and with the same amount of points on both sides...

It's a tie!
Parameters
Publication date
Last updated date
Type
Standard
Number of rounds
4
Time for argument
Three days
Max argument characters
30,000
Voting period
Two weeks
Point system
Multiple criterions
Voting system
Open
Contender / Pro
15
1687
rating
555
debates
68.11%
won
Description

I believe that DST has become anachronistic.
Do not troll me, and make sure you are aware what being Pro entails.

Round 1
Con
#1
The purpose of Daylight Saving Time (hereafter referred to as DST) is to add an hour of daylight to the evening between the second Sunday in March and revert to standard time on the first Sunday in November (at least in most of the US).

There are several problems with this, which I think can be solved by making it DST year-round, rather than the flip-flop that we currently use.

1. Daylight and Exercise

In the winter months, students and employees will often not get out of school and work respectively until between 3 and 6 O'Clock. Generally, this means somewhere between 5 and 2 hours of daylight remaining in the day for the majority of the US. Students working on homework may not even finish before it's dark and combined with the cold, many will not get the outside time and exercise that is healthy for them. Studies have shown that students get less exercise in the winter months. [1] Just counting students alone, this means that roughly 24% (74.6 million out of the 327 million total) of the US population is adversely affected by DST [2]. I could definitely bring that number up by a substantial margin, but I couldn't find exact statistics on working hours.

2. Criminal Activity

Night and darkness are linked to illegal behavior by a number of studies [3] Significantly more people are up after sunset than before sunrise. In the most criminally active demographics, especially 17-year-old males, this is even more noticeable [4, 5]. "Teens... typically stay up late and sleep in late." [6]

3. Disrupted Circadian Rhythm

The semiannual switch means that the daily sleep cycle is disrupted by an entire hour twice a year. You've probably seen/experienced this for yourself, so I'm not going to find a source for this one.


______

I'll probably have more later.



Pro
#2
So far I see 0 reasons why it's not still relevant today, if anything I see many reasons why it's wrong that it is still relevant today (admitting that it is).
Round 2
Con
#3
So far I see 0 reasons why it's not still relevant today, if anything I see many reasons why it's wrong that it is still relevant today (admitting that it is).
If that sentence could be made a little more clear, that'd be great. Right now I can only interpret that as "I don't see why it's not relevant, I see many reasons why it is wrong for it to be relevant today." Which is a contradictory statement, I think.

I extend all arguments.
Pro
#4
relevant
adjective
 UK  /ˈrel.ə.vənt/ US  /ˈrel.ə.vənt/

B2 connected with what is happening or being discussed:
Opposite

correct or suitable for a particular purpose:
plans to make schooling more relevant to life beyond school

DST is relevant, even to this debate but more so to the world even if it is wrong to have.
Round 3
Con
#5
The claim is that DST is anachronistic, not irrelevant.
The sword is anachronistic and irrelevant to modern warfare.
The oil lantern is anachronistic and irrelevant to modern lighting methods.
DST is anachronistic but relevant to modern society in the U.S.

DST is no longer needed, and has more negative than positive effects.
Pro
#6
But it still is present in many nations and to those it isn't present/used in, it's still very relevant when it comes to arranging overseas video conferences and trade deals etc.

Knowing which 'timezone of a timezone' the people you're dealing with are in is essential and relevant even today. This is entirely true even if it is something that Con proves to be a detrimental thing for us.

100s of nations use it even today:

Round 4
Con
#7
IT DOES NOT MATTER IF DST IS RELEVANT.

DST'S RELEVANCE IS IRRELEVANT TO THE CLAIM.
Pro
#8
thank you for this concession.