The Economist took a look at countries that attempt to mess with the time-space continuum:

• North Korea has decided to go back in time. A few days ago it turned its clocks back an hour to establish a new time zone for itself.
• The insular country probably thinks the unique time zone is a metaphor for the country’s exceptionalism.
• The rest of the world probably thinks that the country going backwards in time is a good metaphor for the economic and social policies of the Hermit Kingdom.
• Other countries use time zones to assert their authority. Despite their size, India and China, for example, impose one clock on their entire populace.
• Hugo Chavez turned Venezuela’s clocks back so that it wouldn’t share the same time zone as the United States.
• Messing with time is a millennia old practice. The Roman Senate named the month of July after Julius Caesar.
• When they decided to honour Augustus Caesar with his own month, they had to mess around with the days in several other months so that Augustus’ month was no shorter than Julius’.
• Not all changes stick. France once tried to introduce a ten hour clock and Turkmenistan’s former President tried to rename every day and month, including a month just for his mother.

Read about other changes that haven’t stood the test of….time here.

Source: The Economist