Early this year there was an official proposal that everyone I talked to thought was a great idea. Personally, I thought it was genius and was kicking myself for not thinking of it. The idea was to make Florida permanently on Daylight Savings time!
Let us call aces, aces. Standard Time in the winter is nothing but a depression for all. Additionally, the State of Florida lives on people from the states north of us coming to visit for their winter vacations. I remind those who live in Florida that the state does not have an income tax and that is because of tourism.
So imagine having the State of Florida on Daylight Savings time year round! Visitors could come to Florida on their winter retreat from the ice and snow and additionally get an hour more of daylight to enjoy! What a perfect scenario!
My friend, Gypsea Travels, was over at our home for a BBQ this week and reminded me of it. What she told me got me annoyed, but I thank Gypsea for bringing it to my attention! Thanks Gypsea!!!
According to Gypsea, the proposal has been languishing and has not been addressed since MARCH! March 12th, 2018 to be exact! It's currently wallowing in the dungeon of bureaucracy having been introduced by Sen, Marco Rubio (R-Fl), read twice then referred to The Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. Hey Marco? What happened? You introduced it then treated it like a hot potato and passed the buck? Yeah, no follow up? Dumped it on to someone else? Hello.
Going back to calling ace's, aces, this proposal could mean literally billions in state revenue. Imagine a family in Peoria, Illinois thinking about their winter-relief get away.
“Well Gertrude, do you want to go to Mexico or Florida for this year's vacation?”
“That's a no-brainer, Wally! Florida has warm weather and they're on Daylight Savings time, so we pick up that extra hour! Additionally, we have the security of staying in the United States! Florida it is!”
As Gertrude pointed out, it's “a no-brainer”! Yet, the proposal remains sitting unattended on a desk since March, while the tourist season is approaching as fast as an IndyCar coming down the front straight for the checkered flag!
Let's face it, as far as the State of Florida goes, it's most likely too late to do anything for the 2019 season.
However, here in the Conch Republic, is it? Here's a look at what we are looking at here in the Florida Keys.
In 1982 the U.S. Government installed a checkpoint on U.S.1 in Florida City looking for illegal aliens. This caused catastrophic delays as every single car was checked (even looking in glove boxes!). Consequently, The Florida Keys was a destination easy to enter, but impossible to leave. Who would want to come here for vacation? When the government was appealed to stop the nonsense, it fell on deaf ears. Frustrated Key West business owners and the Mayor went to Miami and Tallahassee to request the roadblocks cease. When this didn't work they said if they were going to be treated like a foreign country, they would become one and secede from the United States. They returned to Key West and did just that the next day, creating The Conch Republic, which included all of Monroe County and part of Dade County (Today, Miami/Dade) stretching from The Florida Keys to The Last Chance Saloon in Florida City. It worked and the roadblocks were removed.
The Conch Republic, however, was never dissolved. To this day, throughout the Florida Keys, you'll see Conch Republic flags. We never gave up the Conch Republic.
So, I'm sure you see where this is going: Why doesn't the Conch Republic just retain Daylight Savings Time throughout the region on our own? The Federal Government regulates time zones but let's not forget, we're the Conch Republic!
Old City Hall, Key West with a clock that actually works!
We're about to have a mayoral election, so timing is awkward, however, the visitors don't care one way or another about a race for Key West mayor. They care about having fun in the sun. Fun in the sun equals happy people, both visitors as well as vendors. Hotels fill up, restaurants fill up, stores fill up, everyone does more business! Besides, we're not only talking about Key West but the entire Conch Republic, from the Dry Tortugas to The Last Chance Saloon.
Let us change The Conch Republic to Daylight Savings Time year round! In the islands of warmth and sunshine, the more we have, the better!
As the Conch Republic, we don't need anyone's approval but our own. We're talking about our livelihood. It really is a no-brainer.
As citizens and business owners, in the spirit of 1982's secession, even if the Feds won't look at it, we can do a grassroots movement and just do it on our own and call it CRT, Conch Republic Time.
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The Key West has been a part of Florida since 1982 and the conch republic history that follows its independence and movement is nothing more than a fight for freedom.
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