I agree that month/day/year is less logical in writing. It does, however, match the way it is said in speech (February 12th, not the 12th of February, or 12 February).

I also agree with woodsman'sgame that we should have gone over to Metric a quarter-century ago -- basically when Britain did. It's idiotic that we can't conform to the rest of the known universe.

And thanks to Faibhar for pointing out that most style books (of which I have several) are designed for media use. That had completely escaped me. Sometimes I overlook the obvious.