December 9, 2007

"I don't care if they call me crazy, the new time will go ahead."

Says Hugo Chavez, creating a new time zone for Venezuela, setting the clocks back half an hour.
Science and Technology Minister Hector Nacarro praised the measure.

"I see it as a very positive thing that while there is light we can be in it," he said.

And President Chavez said earlier this year that schoolchildren would arrive for lessons with more energy as a result of the change.

"These children have to get up at five in the morning... they arrive at school dead tired. And why? Because of our time."

Fiendish time! It's ruining everything!

Actually, this isn't the only half-hour-off time zone:
Canada's Newfoundland province is half-an-hour out of step with other Atlantic provinces.

Pakistan is only half-an-hour behind India, while Nepal is a mere 15 minutes ahead of its large southern neighbour.

Western Australia and South Australia observe a 90-minute time difference across the state boundary.

However, the remote border town of Eucla and the surrounding area, home to a few hundred people, operates on its own time zone, 45 minutes ahead of Western Australia and 45 minutes behind South Australia.

20 comments:

Crimso said...

"Lorentz" and "Chavez" both end with a zed. Just a coincidence? I don't think so.

Gedaliya said...

As I write this I am in Hyderabad, India. It is 7:15pm Sunday, December 9th.

Note the time the comment is posted.

George M. Spencer said...

It could be worse.

King George II took 11 days out of the calendar in 1752.

But that was to catch up with the rest of Europe which made the jump in 1582.

rhhardin said...

Is Australia having next summer or last summer?

Richard Fagin said...

I am reminded of the William Jennings Bryan character in "Inherit the Wind" who said that the creation took place at 9 AM.

ricpic said...

It's Howdy Doody time,
It's Howdy Doody time,
It's time to see the show,
So kids let's GO!

john said...

What's a zed?

KCFleming said...

Chavez is no more silly than our own Government in trying to legislate time under the "daylight savings time" banner.

All governments yearn to be God and say the words, "Cue the Sun."

Gedaliya said...

All governments yearn to be God and say the words, "Cue the Sun."

Well, God didn't invent the clock, man did. Designating the "time" is our business, and has always been so. Deciding how close to sunrise and sunset certain hours lie is the business of kings and legislatures. As it always has been, so it always shall be.

Ruth Anne Adams said...

Tehran, Iran also has a half hour differential from those time zones around it.

Unknown said...

Well, I guess this is a less noxious reaction to his recent defeat than sending out goon squads.

John Stodder said...

Hugo Chavez reminds me of my favorite scene in "Bananas."

Esposito: From this day on, the official language of San Marcos will be Swedish. Silence! In addition to that, all citizens will be required to change their underwear every half-hour. Underwear will be worn on the outside so we can check. Furthermore, all children under 16 years old are now... 16 years old!

john said...

OK, I'll answer myself: good question john! Zed is a 3-letter word meaning the letter z. Chiefly British, it should be archaic, and would be except for said British. If you had to make a word out of a letter, try "zee" instead. H is the only other letter one could conceivably make into the word "aitch"; although it would take a Brit to justify it, it certainly makes more sense than zed.

Oh, was this an open topic coffeehouse this morning?

Chip Ahoy said...

Time's not my bag. It's totally irrelevant to American law and politics, unless perhaps you're a red-necked voter in the Florida panhandle susceptible to early voting-results reporting.

Cabbage said...

Venezuela is the Northwest Indiana of South America.

john said...

Cabbage - nice.

Can you get me invited onto your blog (tip the admin or something)?

Swifty Quick said...

Hey Hugo, with planning, and if you shuffle the clocks around just right a couple of times a day, Venezualia can have sunlight shining on it 24 hours a day.

Original Mike said...

What's a zed?

Zed's dead, baby.
Zed's dead.

Bill said...

Chavez's 'Great Leap Backward'.

Joe said...

Sometimes even nuts are right. In my state, I would rather they split the difference between standard and daylight time and quick the damn changing twice a year.