Some thoughts on whether daily life should follow Xinjiang Time (UTC+6) or Beijing Time (UTC+8).
Recently I saw a short-video creator criticizing people in Xinjiang who use Xinjiang Time, and it brought back a confusion I used to have myself: why should people in Xinjiang live by Beijing Time, which comes from a place thousands of kilometers away and two time zones apart?
That creator said people who use Xinjiang Time are trying to be special: "Everyone uses Beijing Time, so why do you need Xinjiang Time?" I can understand people who think that way, because I used to have the same questions. Why can people not use local time where they actually live? Why is twelve o'clock noon in Beijing, but two in the afternoon in Xinjiang? Why can other people say, "I get up at six," while people in Xinjiang have to say, "I get up at eight"? In practice, people are eating, working, and resting at the same kinds of hours, but Xinjiang people are expected to mentally add or subtract two hours in order to line up with the inland time zone.
Only after entering society and starting work did I have the chance to observe more of how things function. I understand why the government does not want every region using its own local time in formal settings. Using one standard time across the country makes cross-regional communication and cooperation easier. Government records, train schedules, and many other systems all rely on Beijing Time. These are arrangements that keep the country on the same track and improve efficiency.
Still, I do not think ordinary people in daily life need to be regulated on this point, because from the perspective of daily living, local time is more accurate and more in line with a normal sense of time. If a sleep expert tells me that the best bedtime is ten-thirty, I do not want to sit there adding two hours in my head before I know when I am supposed to sleep.
No matter where I am, I will probably tend to use local time. In Shanghai I get up at 7:30, and in Urumqi I also get up at 7:30. When I speak with someone else, I will use whichever way of telling time they are used to. For work and travel, though, I will prioritize Beijing Time. And whenever I hear a specific time, I will usually confirm it once more by asking, "Do you mean Beijing Time?"
If someone attacks me for that, I will probably say: you are trying to control too much.