SUDDENLY, THE TIME ZONE RULE IS LOSING ITS APPEAL

In Portugal, politics really can put you to sleep (Isabel Vincent, June 03, 2003, National Post)

Already derided as the laziest nation in Europe, Portugal did nothing to invigorate its reputation yesterday when a member of Parliament launched a nationwide campaign to promote the afternoon nap.

"It is a tradition of our Mediterranean culture," insisted Jose Miguel Medeiros, a Socialist MP, in an interview with state radio.

Mr. Medeiros, who recently co-founded the Portuguese Association for Friends of Napping, wants afternoon naps to be adopted by the country's labour codes. While the afternoon nap has been a tradition in many Mediterranean and Latin American countries, it is quickly fading. Many businesses close for three hours at lunchtime in Portugal's small towns and villages, but the big cities have dispensed with the nap.

However, in places where the nap is still in existence, businesses tend to open earlier in the morning and close later. This is seen by Mr. Medeiros and his supporters as a bad sign, and their organization is vigorously campaigning against a recent move to shorten lunch breaks, which has made naps virtually impossible.

There are actually numerous studies that show you'd get higher productivity from workers if you let them nap for awhile during the work day. Data also demonstrates the idiocy of having kids start the school day so early. We'll not hold our breath though waiting for society to act on mere facts. Posted by Orrin Judd at June 3, 2003 01:37 PM