Whatever Happened to the Metric System?

Whatever Happened to the Metric System?

Part of the reason America never changed, of course, is people's natural resistance to change. Another reason is that we already think in feet, inches, pounds and gallons. We can quickly imagine the size of a five-gallon container of gasoline, a 16-ounce steak or a guy six feet seven, but we have no idea how big a 450 gram steak is.

But if you think about it rationally and pragmatically, there's a good reason to hold on to our awkward, old-fashioned measurements. It's a matter of return on investment.

If we make the change, it'll cost a shitload of money. As just one example, take the miles to kilometers conversion on highways. Just about every sign on a limited access road has to be changed. Exit 139 very often means 139 miles from the state line. In between those exit signs there are lots of tiny signs that mark the miles and tenths of miles. All have to be replaced - and not in the same locations, because the signpost at 139.1 miles is not precisely in the same place where we have to place the new 223.9 sign. It's about 130 feet away. Then, of course, there are the speed limits and the distance advisories. That means we taxpayers have to assume the cost of the materials for the new signs, the labor cost of manufacturing them, the labor cost of installing them and removing the old ones, and the disposal costs of the old ones.

Now what do we get for that investment? Confusion, of course. And ... ??? See what I mean? There are no short term, tangible or intangible benefits. There are long term tangible benefits in terms of standardization with the rest of the world, but they have minimal impact on the average taxpayer. There is value, of course, but it's mostly long term and intangible value, so most of us just shrug our shoulders and say, "Why bother?"

The equation is different if you are creating your own country and have to choose from scratch between the two systems. The metric system is better overall, and very much better in some ways, so if you're just starting out in your fantasy country league and have to choose one, go metric.