I honestly don't understand the need to close the blinds during the short periods of takeoff and landing. Sure, the sun can be annoying, but it's only a few minutes at each end of the flight, so why the big deal?

It's not like you can really sleep through boarding and takeoff, anyway - it the sun coming through the window is enough to keep you awake, the noise and motion of other pax boarding and the plane itself taking off is certainly going to keep you awake, too. And sleeping through landing isn't really an option, at least most of the time, since you're going to have to wake up to gather your stuff and deplane, anyway. Sure, if you're on a pass-through flight you might be able to sleep through the landing and subsequent take-off, but it's doubtful due to the noise and jostling of pax and aircraft movement.

Now, I realize that there will be special circumstances for one percent of people or so. And I expect those who disagree with me to post a long list of Whatabouts - "What about a pax who has a health issue? What about a pax who is really, really, really, really tired? What about ME? What about MY DESIRES?" Etc., etc., etc. But if you have a legitimate health issue that requires the window shade of your row to be closed from the moment your butt hits the seat until the moment you deplane, then you should talk to the GA or FA or even the captain as soon as you get aboard and make special arrangements for an aisle seat, or a seat in a row without a window, or something.

OR, avoid the entire argument in the first place and just get yourself a sleep mask. They're pretty cheap and do a much better job of keeping you in the dark than simply closing the shade.