Question

why do some countries have many time zones??

Answer 1

Time zones are arbitrary, and designed for keeping order, and uniformity. We all know when the sun rises and sets, but for our citizens 100 kilometres west, we see it before they do. What time is it there when we call them? The zones tell you. I knew of a place on the edge of a time zone that did not observe daylight savings time. Everyone around them did. I once missed a plane because of it.

Countries have a right to legislate what time zones to use and where to draw the lines. It is they and their people who pay the price.

That is why often the lines are crooked. They want all the people to read the same time in their clocks.

It was a problem in 2000 when Dan Rather incorrectly announced Florida had voted for Al Gore, By Law, that can only be done after the polls close. The problem was, the Florida Panhandle is in the Central time zone, and the rest of the state is in the Eastern time zone. The Panhandle is more conservative and as luck would have it, closed the gap and made Florida too close to call. If any Panhandle voters had heard the state was already in the bag for Hire, and went home without voting because of it, then Dan Rather was responsible for interfering with an election. All over an imaginary line.

We have time zones because the earth us turning. If everywhere is 8 am at the same time, some are driving to work with the sun in their eyes and some in pitch black sub zero weather, it isn’t very practical.