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King For a Day

Adopt the 2400-Hour Time System?

5 votes

Adopt a National Unified Time Zone?

1 votes

Adopt the Metric System?

9 votes

Frayed Knot Dec 26 2012 02:38 PM

In this exercise you have been given dictatorial powers to declare a change to the social customs in the United States in one but only one of the following ways 1) Declare the adoption of the military style 24-hour time keeping system. Gone will be the AM/PM designations and the inconvenience of using a colon to write times of day. From your say on 4:20 PM will be known as 1620 and so on. 2) Impose a single time zone across all of the 48 continental states (because who really cares about Hawaii and Alaska?) - presumably one that splits the difference between the current Eastern & Pacific times. What the clock will say in Seattle is the same thing the clock says in Boston. 3) Adoption of the metric system for all distaces and weights. So from your command on, all highway distance markers, product net weights, etc. would be in Kilometers and Grams. Since your power in this one area is absolute, all citizens must adapt or die (or, y'know, spend a bunch of time being really confused). You can vote for just one of those choices but you also must vote for one of them. I’m not giving you the ‘None of the Above’ cop out (unless, of course, you simply choose to avoid this whole stupid thread).

themetfairy Dec 26 2012 02:42 PM Re: King For a Day

Military time. I use it anyway whenever possible. It avoids confusion.

TransMonk Dec 26 2012 02:48 PM Re: King For a Day

Metric system.

sharpie Dec 26 2012 02:53 PM Re: King For a Day

Of those, metric system. I would also eliminate the penny and the one dollar bill. Round up or down for change and mint one and two dollar coins, just as they have one and two euro coins. I have no objection to military time but I'm against the time zone change.

The Second Spitter Dec 26 2012 03:24 PM Re: King For a Day

Can you please add the option "adopt US customary units"?

Ceetar Dec 26 2012 03:46 PM Re: King For a Day

i've never found much confusing with am/pm nor have time zones really bothered me and I guess I'd feel for the people that crave sunshine. (splitting the difference would mean the sun sets at like 3:30pm right around now) That might be nice in the future when we've finally done away with the rigid 9-5 formula for flexible all hours situations, but not today. so metric. clearly Metric. it's not only an easier system, it's more common and there are plenty of things using it already. cushion the change. When the weather people say "It's going to be COLD tonight, going down to 2 or 3 degrees celsius which is only a bit above freezing". or "It's going to be 25 degrees today, just above room temperature"

Benjamin Grimm Dec 26 2012 04:00 PM Re: King For a Day

I'd pass on all three.

Frayed Knot Dec 26 2012 05:29 PM Re: King For a Day

Changing to the 24-hour clock seems to be the easiest to implement so I'd probably go with that one. I'm not sure how the whole AM/PM thing started but it always seemed rather silly to me and the other version so much easier. I've kept my digital watch on 24-hour time for like 20 years now and wish I had that option on more things. Going to the metric system would be great but would also be the hardest as so many things in business are so ingrained - although the drink industry had little problem moving to liters in certain circumstances. At the very least I don't see why individual states don't make highway signs with dual Mi/Km readings, particularly in border states. The Time Zone unification idea is really stupid. The only reason I even included it is because I heard Mike Greenberg on ESPN yapping about it. He seems to have claimed this as his pet project and is under the impression that this would make watching sporting events much easier - most notably for those on the east coast and have jobs that start at 6AM/0600. But what he fails to realize is that just because you call it 8PM/2000 everywhere in the country doesn't make 8PM mean the same thing in different parts of the country. You'd constantly have to mentally adjust what a particular time means in other states/areas which would be tougher to get used to than the simple adding/subtracting that goes on now.

Frayed Knot Dec 26 2012 05:29 PM Re: King For a Day

The Second Spitter wrote: Can you please add the option "adopt US customary units"? If I had any idea what that was I might have included it as an option.

Fman99 Dec 26 2012 06:53 PM Re: King For a Day

I'd make all of the beaches topless. Fuck your choices, pal.

seawolf17 Dec 26 2012 07:04 PM Re: King For a Day

Military time is the easiest, so I'm tempted to go there, but metric would be fun.

Kong76 Dec 26 2012 07:22 PM Re: King For a Day

Adopt the 2400-Hour Time System? Can't get people to adopt my 1200 clock, they'd never show up at 1500 Adopt a National Unified Time Zone? Uh, no thank you. Adopt the Metric System? This is hopefully kilometers away from my lifetime.

Edgy MD Dec 26 2012 08:02 PM Re: King For a Day

Twelve vs. 24 hours --- it's not like anybody is confused either way. Standized time zone --- totally counterproductive. So it's metric --- Jimmy Carter's big failure was the right move by a president without the political capital to pull it off. (Who ever will have that much capital again? Did even Reagan?) Metric is the language of scientific achievement. I imagine that we'd all have a time adapting, but the kids will learn it immediately if it's all they're taught in and it's the sea in which they swim. If every stoner in America can convert grams to ounces instantly, so can you.

Kong76 Dec 26 2012 08:18 PM Re: King For a Day

Edgy MD wrote: If every stoner in America can convert grams to ounces instantly, so can you. That's funny. Really. Can't imagine the whole country having to change every road sign while bridges are crumbling and all kinds of other stuff ... And that's just for starters.

metsmarathon Dec 26 2012 08:32 PM Re: King For a Day

well, the bridges could be remade in metric size, so there ya go.

Edgy MD Dec 26 2012 08:38 PM Re: King For a Day

Road signs. Those will be paid for by the scientific achievement!

Ceetar Dec 26 2012 09:21 PM Re: King For a Day

Everyone would adapt to the Metric system realllly easily. GPSs tell us how long it's going to take now anyway, so there's less of a problem with gauging travel time. And the rough 'half it' estimate would give a ballpark. Something's 220 Kilometers? that's 100 miles. before long you'd stop doing the conversion. Temperature too. It's all just ingrained from daily use, but once we started using something else it'd be easy. And weights and measures? half of America never seems to remember how many cups in a quart or pints in a gallon, so metric would be a snap. And don't worry, we can still call a half liter of beer a pint. But we're not spelling it litre. that's where I draw the line.

Edgy MD Dec 26 2012 10:09 PM Re: King For a Day

"All this time I've been resisting the metric system... and now, finally, all those Midnight Oil songs make sense!"

The Second Spitter Dec 26 2012 10:22 PM Re: King For a Day

Frayed Knot wrote: The Second Spitter wrote: Can you please add the option "adopt US customary units"? If I had any idea what that was I might have included it as an option. American imperial measurements -- as opposed to Pommie imperial measurements .

metirish Dec 27 2012 06:43 AM Re: King For a Day

The whole metric thing can get confusing especially now that I have lived here for 18 years....plus there is this Republic of Ireland Main article: Metrication in Ireland The Republic of Ireland has officially changed over to the metric system since entering the European Union, with distances on new road signs being metric since 1997 and speed limits being metric since 2005. The imperial system remains in limited use – for sales of beer in pubs (traditionally sold by the pint). All other goods are required by law to be sold in metric units, although old quantities are retained for some goods like butter, which is sold in 454-gram (1 lb) packaging. The majority of cars sold pre-2005 feature speedometers with miles per hour. The imperial system is still often used in everyday conversation, especially in the terms of height and weight, particularly by the older generation/b]

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 06:49 AM Re: King For a Day

Best way for these things to work is for people to get comfortable with them right? so here you go.. [url]https://www.google.com/search?q=feet+to+meters+conversion&oq=feet+to+meters+conversion&sugexp=chrome,mod=3&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#hl=en&sugexp=les%3Bpchatac&gs_rn=1&gs_ri=serp&tok=pS6yWFRLmO28VRQ2xMliQQ&pq=feet%20to%20meters%20conversion&cp=13&gs_id=31&xhr=t&q=inches+to+cm+conversion&pf=p&safe=off&tbo=d&sclient=psy-ab&oq=inches+to+cm+&gs_l=&pbx=1&bav=on.2,or.r_gc.r_pw.r_cp.r_qf.&bvm=bv.1355534169,d.dmQ&fp=93a0003da4073894&bpcl=40096503&biw=1168&bih=748 I'm 177 cm tall, or 1.77 meters. I weight 113 kg. my p.., wait, wrong thread.

Frayed Knot Dec 27 2012 07:26 AM Re: King For a Day

Converting to metric isn't the hard part (well, some people are so mathematically inept that for them it is). It's getting folks to think in metric that's much tougher. I'm one of those who can do the math in my head most of the time and could even change my bike computer to give me readings in Km instead of miles, but the speed and distance readouts don't gain any perspective until I do the conversions because, while I know what 50 miles means, I don't know what 80 Km means until I figure out that it's roughly the same as 50 miles. If you ask your wife whether she wants to re-do the kitchen floor with 30 cm tiles or 40 cm tiles she's going to threaten you with the frying pan until you explain to her that those are 12 & 16 inch. Those measurements are things people can picture or imagine. Not to say it couldn't happen over a number of years (I recall Duan giving us a little talk on how it's faring in Ireland a while back - re: that article above) but this is also a much bigger country and is much more further removed from countries in Asia or the EU who use this on a regular basis. I'd love to see it happen, but most of us won't. Hell, even something simple and cost efficient like Sharpie's suggestion of the dollar and two dollar coins has been talked about for years and probably has little or no political opposition can't get done.

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 07:32 AM Re: King For a Day

right, and you can't think in metric until you know the benchmarks. When someone tells you something is 6feet tall, do you not picture it at about person height. so when someone says something is 2 meters, it's a little bit bigger than most people. If something's a kilometer away, it's about a casual 10 minute stroll away. But just because something is daunting doesn't mean it's not worthwhile to start the process. Maybe we HAVE started the process, and it's generational. Forcing more and more metric on the children.

Benjamin Grimm Dec 27 2012 07:38 AM Re: King For a Day

I don't see how it's worth the effort. The US can convert to the metric system after I'm dead, but while I'm still around I'd prefer to keep doing things the old way. I know we're out of step with the rest of the world, but so what? Who wants to be a conformist?

Edgy MD Dec 27 2012 07:41 AM Re: King For a Day

Fifteen hundred meters sounds like an in-between-distance race for flunky neither-sprinter-nor-endurance runners who can't race at a round number higher or lower distances. It sounds like a ghetto distance. But running the mile? Well, that's a run for CHAMPIONS! We're the only industrialized nation not using it, although we've sanctioned it since the civil war. Our guns and drug dosages are measured in metrics and that's what's important. I don't see how it's worth the effort. The US can convert to the metric system after I'm dead, but while I'm still around I'd prefer to keep doing things the old way. I know we're out of step with the rest of the world, but so what? Who wants to be a conformist? Because a technically proficient nation is a high-achieving one, and metrical measurements universally, simply, and brilliantly built around base ten is the mathematical language of technical proficiency.

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 07:43 AM Re: King For a Day

Well, I'd much prefer the US go back to being trend-settings at the cutting edge of advancements in science and technology, but conforming to universal standards (hey, maybe even with things like Kobe Beef?) would be a good start. I get that we're roughly teen-aged as a nation, but that doesn't mean we have to adopt the 'we know better, screw you all' attitude of one. Just think, it's a way to cut corners! Congrats kid, you just ran the kilometer! Be Proud! you're healthy and active! We've switched our 12 ounce cans to a nice round 300ml! With only a 5% markup! Great deal!

metirish Dec 27 2012 07:51 AM Re: King For a Day

Personally I am more comfortable with what we use, it's how I think now....

Frayed Knot Dec 27 2012 07:59 AM Re: King For a Day

Ceetar wrote: We've switched our 12 ounce cans to a nice round 300ml! With only a 5% markup! Great deal! That was actually part of the problem when the few industries, like wine and liquor, did begin a switch to metric in the '70s; some of them used it as a way to slyly increase prices. The increases weren't much but they were enough to convince some folks that it was all a plot causing some of them to forever associate the word metric with rip-off. Other industries with products that are more long-lasting than cans and bottles will have a much tougher time converting - although isn't it funny how the soda industry went to metric measurements for their larger bottles but not cans?

Swan Swan H Dec 27 2012 08:11 AM Re: King For a Day

Frayed Knot wrote: Ceetar wrote: We've switched our 12 ounce cans to a nice round 300ml! With only a 5% markup! Great deal! That was actually part of the problem when the few industries, like wine and liquor, did begin a switch to metric in the '70s; some of them used it as a way to slyly increase prices. The increases weren't much but they were enough to convince some folks that it was all a plot causing some of them to forever associate the word metric with rip-off. Other industries with products that are more long-lasting than cans and bottles will have a much tougher time converting - although isn't it funny how the soda industry went to metric measurements for their larger bottles but not cans? Milk is still sold in pints/quarts/gallons, probably for ease of conversion in recipes. I don't think the cows really care.

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 08:15 AM Re: King For a Day

Milk and Soda Cans are sized for imperial, but almost all of them contain the metric measurements. There's no real rule that says it's gotta be a round number. just print 355 ML (12oz) instead of 12oz (355ML) and 60 years from now someone can drop the (12oz) for you.

Edgy MD Dec 27 2012 08:16 AM Re: King For a Day

Because if you buy your kids a half gallon of soda, you're a horrible mother raising a bunch of fatsos. If you give them two liters, you're the soul of modest moderation. Gallon is the language of wholesome milk. Whether gas or milk, we think of "gallon" as a goodly amount. Nobody wants to be the mother who places a goodly amount of Coke on her children's table.

Swan Swan H Dec 27 2012 08:25 AM Re: King For a Day

Edgy MD wrote: Because if you buy your kids a half gallon of soda, you're a horrible mother raising a bunch of fatsos. If you give them two liters, you're the soul of modest moderation. Gallon is the language of wholesome milk. Whether gas or milk, we think of "gallon" as a goodly amount. Nobody wants to be the mother who places a goodly amount of Coke on her children's table. Colloquialisms would need to be updated. Imagine Charles Ingalls calling Laura 237 ml, or Alice Kramden's mother saying "I'm not losing a daughter, I'm gaining 907 kg."

Edgy MD Dec 27 2012 08:50 AM Re: King For a Day

"And we're very happy to have Eminem on the show tonight. Eminem, of course, is the star of the big hit movie 8 Mile. The film had a fantastic opening weekend and has resounded particularly well with European audiences, where it's being marketed under the name 12.875 K." --- Letterman

Kong76 Dec 27 2012 09:03 AM Re: King For a Day

I fondly remember sitting in the stands at Shea and looking at the windy flags and thinking it would take quite a poke to hit one over the 124.968 mark. Lefties would do well to pull the ball down the line and try for the 103.022 mark. The Agee marker, Straw bombing one off the the score- board ... Lord knows how many meters they were. Baseball is a beautiful game with perfect dimensions. The pitcher pitches that ball 1844.04 cm and then the runner rounds bags separated by 2743.20 cm.

Edgy MD Dec 27 2012 09:11 AM Re: King For a Day

Ralph Kiner used to always make that crack about how Steve Palmer and Tim McCarver were going to be buried 18.440 meters apart. Remember the gasp in the stadium when Randy Myers first hit 160.93 kph and they showed it on the scoreboard?

metirish Dec 27 2012 09:13 AM Re: King For a Day

Speaking of Mo Vaughn, remember his 166 meter bomb of the scoreboard, hit the Bud sign? seriously, it just sounds better the other way....546 feet

Kong76 Dec 27 2012 09:22 AM Re: King For a Day

Steve Palmer? Is that Tim's husband?

Edgy MD Dec 27 2012 09:23 AM Re: King For a Day

Shouldn't post when I'm on the phone with wifey.

Kong76 Dec 27 2012 09:24 AM Re: King For a Day

Sounds like something Ralphie would say on hot Sunday in August.

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 09:25 AM Re: King For a Day

metirish wrote: Speaking of Mo Vaughn, remember his 166 meter bomb of the scoreboard, hit the Bud sign? seriously, it just sounds better the other way....546 feet yeah, but it went 16000 centimeters. Doesn't sound as strong because we're not used to it. but 100 meters is basically a poke that barely makes it out anywhere (328) and 150 is a monstrous shot (492) so you're looking at the 100-150 range. I think that works okay. And think about how much we'll joke about Yankee Stadium allowing 2digit home run distances.

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 09:27 AM Re: King For a Day

Quiz: There were only two 2012 home runs that went over the fence at less than 100 meters. Who hit them and where were they hit? (going off hittrackeronline true distance anyway)

Edgy MD Dec 27 2012 09:30 AM Re: King For a Day

Kong76 wrote: Sounds like something Ralphie would say on hot Sunday in August. My sympathy for his screwups grows more every day.

metirish Dec 27 2012 09:32 AM Re: King For a Day

Ceetar wrote: Quiz: There were only two 2012 home runs that went over the fence at less than 100 meters. Who hit them and where were they hit? (going off hittrackeronline true distance anyway) Cano at MFYSIII?

Swan Swan H Dec 27 2012 09:34 AM Re: King For a Day

Ceetar wrote: Quiz: There were only two 2012 home runs that went over the fence at less than 100 meters. Who hit them and where were they hit? (going off hittrackeronline true distance anyway) Gotta be the Big Post Office in The Bronx. I'll guess Jeets and Swisher.

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 09:43 AM Re: King For a Day

yes to yankee stadium for one of them, but it wasn't a Yankee.

Frayed Knot Dec 27 2012 04:46 PM Re: King For a Day

The Second Spitter wrote: The Second Spitter wrote: Can you please add the option "adopt US customary units"? If I had any idea what that was I might have included it as an option. American imperial measurements -- as opposed to Pommie imperial measurements . Still clueless.

The Second Spitter Dec 27 2012 05:17 PM Re: King For a Day

Kong76 wrote: Baseball is a beautiful game with perfect dimensions. The pitcher pitches that ball 1844.04 cm and then the runner rounds bags separated by 2743.20 cm. In countries outside the US, these irregular dimensions are a "tip of the hat" to the game's American origins. It's really quite a nice touch, imo. What's funny is the American football leagues that operate here still use the American terms, "4th & inches" and penalties are called in terms of "yards". Still clueless. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comparison ... nt_systems

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 06:08 PM Re: King For a Day

27.432 meters between bases. 28 meters is 91.8635 if you wanted to make it a round number. This is very very marginal, and would account for bigger faster humans than when the game originated. And it's not unprecedented, being much akin to lowering the mound. alternatively we could have a trivia question in 2052: Why are the bases in baseball 27.432 meters apart? a: The game was invented before America adopted the metric system.

Kong76 Dec 27 2012 06:21 PM Re: King For a Day

Edgy MD wrote: Kong76 wrote: Sounds like something Ralphie would say on hot Sunday in August. My sympathy for his screwups grows more every day. Dude is an Icon X 10, no sympathy!!

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr Dec 27 2012 06:29 PM Re: King For a Day

Ceetar wrote: yes to yankee stadium for one of them, but it wasn't a Yankee. Cabrera? Bautista?

Ceetar Dec 27 2012 07:04 PM Re: King For a Day

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Ceetar wrote: yes to yankee stadium for one of them, but it wasn't a Yankee. Cabrera? Bautista? Iannetta. The other isn't very obvious either, B.J. Upton at Tropicana Field.

The Second Spitter Dec 27 2012 09:26 PM Re: King For a Day

Ceetar wrote: 27.432 meters between bases. 28 meters is 91.8635 if you wanted to make it a round number. This is very very marginal, and would account for bigger faster humans than when the game originated. And it's not unprecedented, being much akin to lowering the mound. . If they round up the bases to 28 metres, Prince Fielder faces the realistic danger of grounding out to RF.

Edgy MD Jan 25 2013 02:07 PM Re: King For a Day

Minnesota's Metropolitan Stadium, getting with the metric program in 1977.

cooby Jan 25 2013 02:13 PM Re: King For a Day

2400

Frayed Knot Jan 25 2013 02:56 PM Re: King For a Day

Edgy MD wrote: Minnesota's Metropolitan Stadium, getting with the metric program in 1977. I seem to recall several stadiums displaying the dual signs during that era - most notably Stade Olympique - but none stuck with it very long.