It was a satire piece, published for the gullible French. It included taxing window shutters, ringing church bells, firing cannons at sunrise... and not even the readers of the Journal de Paris took it seriously.
Instead, as usual, the blame goes to Woodrow Wilson. "When in doubt, it's Woodrow's fault", is a pretty good rule of thumb for American history.
By the numbers, traffic fatalities are exacerbated by daylight savings, along with heart attacks and all the rest. Lives aren't saved by having the system overall, but the opposite.
What matters here isn't what's convenient for you, personally, but what's most beneficial to society as a whole.
In general, I think what is best for the greatest good is the same as what's the best for the individual good and individual freedom, when it comes to policy.
But in terms of ordering time, it's probably best to all be on the same page.
The stereotypical job is 9-5.
There can always be jobs that are 8-4, or 10-6, or any other time regardless of where the sun is in relation to the area. I sometimes leave for work at 1 in the morning, and do deliveries all morning.
Point is, daylight savings doesn't set business hours... Businesses do. And it's the sudden change that becomes dangerous for the greatest amount of people.