I paid a lot for my Rado watch. It is the most beautiful watch I have ever seen in its simple design—quite the opposite of the Gaudy Rolex. Sadly, Rado no longer makes this model. Its only disadvantage was that it was hard to set and adjust. For some years I took it to the local watch repair shop to change its setting from standard to daylight savings time or visa versa. A few years ago, I just stop adjusting it and let it be an hour off half of the year.
The time on my watch has nothing to do with when I wake up in the morning, which is governed by the sun, so I sleep less in the summer than in the winter (like bears, I guess). I am happy to report that today my watch again matches the time on my other clocks. Why in the world can’t we get rid of this silly and annoying practice of changing the clock back and forth?
It doesn’t matter to me whether we freeze the clock on standard time or daylight saving time but the medical profession says that waking to sun light is strongly preferred. The Washington Post explains why in an article titled: “Why daylight saving time should be eliminated entirely” https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2026/10/31/daylight-saving-time-is-bad-your-health-here-better-option/ President Trump also supports ending the switches back and forth but choses the wrong one. “The president still wants permanent daylight saving time. His bill could force an awkward clock change this winter.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2026/11/01/trump-backed-daylight-saving-time-bill-could-create-midwinter-time-jump/
One way or the other I hope we can stop the switching.
Author: Warren Coats
I specialize in advising central banks on monetary policy and the development of the capacity to formulate and implement monetary policy. I joined the International Monetary Fund in 1975 from which I retired in 2003 as Assistant Director of the Monetary and Financial Systems Department. While at the IMF I led or participated in missions to the central banks of over twenty countries (including Afghanistan, Bosnia, Croatia, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Kosovo, Kyrgystan, Moldova, Serbia, Turkey, West Bank and Gaza Strip, and Zimbabwe) and was seconded as a visiting economist to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (1979-80), and to the World Bank's World Development Report team in 1989. After retirement from the IMF I was a member of the Board of the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority from 2003-10 and of the editorial board of the Cayman Financial Review from 2010-2017. Prior to joining the IMF I was Assistant Prof of Economics at UVa from 1970-75. I am currently a fellow of Johns Hopkins Krieger School of Arts and Sciences, Institute for Applied Economics, Global Health, and the Study of Business Enterprise. In March 2019 Central Banking Journal awarded me for my “Outstanding Contribution for Capacity Building.” My recent books are One Currency for Bosnia: Creating the Central Bank of Bosnia and Herzegovina; My Travels in the Former Soviet Union; My Travels to Afghanistan; My Travels to Jerusalem; and My Travels to Baghdad. I have a BA in Economics from the UC Berkeley and a PhD in Economics from the University of Chicago. My dissertation committee was chaired by Milton Friedman and included Robert J. Gordon. I live in National Landing Va 22202
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Changing the clocks, while a bit inconvenient, is one of the great democratic rituals we have. It is a yearly reminder that, in a democracy, people can compromise in a manner that isn’t perfect for anyone, but gives almost everyone most of what they really want or need. In this case, early morning light in the winter for school kids and those who must go to work early, and late evening sunshine in the summer to give people (and those who provide services to them) more sunlit hours for after work outdoor activities. Plus, sad is it is to loose the light in the autumn, it is wonderful to get it back in the spring.
how is this a tribute to democracy? Fortunately we can each or in groups (our firm or school) decide when to wake up without forcing us to change the clock.