Daylight Savings Time starts this weekend

On the night of Saturday, March 10, it will be time to change our clocks as we head once more into Daylight Savings Time.

For some of us, the expression “spring ahead, fall back” may be all that keeps us straight on which direction the hands of the clock are supposed to move. For others even that may not be enough, as one Osbourn Park students rejoiced, “It’ll be so much better now. I’ll have an extra hour of sleep!”

For many, the shift in time means that they will now leave for work before the sun has risen over the horizon.

“Daylight Saving Time was instituted in the United States during World War I in order to save energy for war production by taking advantage of the later hours of daylight between April and October. During World War II the federal government again required the states to observe the time change. Between the wars and after World War II, states and communities chose whether or not to observe Daylight Saving Time. In 1966, Congress passed the Uniform Time Act, which standardized the length of Daylight Saving Time,” according to the United States Naval Meteorology and Oceanography Command (USNMOC) (http://aa.usno.navy.mil/faq/docs/daylight_time.php).

Today, the stated purpose for the switch is to allow us to use less energy to light our homes.

“Since 2007, Daylight Saving Time is four weeks longer because of the passage of the Energy Policy Act in 2005. The Act extended Daylight Saving Time by four weeks ... with the hope that it would save 10,000 barrels of oil each day through reduced use of power by businesses during daylight hours,” USNMOC said. “Unfortunately, it is exceedingly difficult to determine energy savings from Daylight Saving Time and based on a variety of factors, it is possible that little or no energy is saved by Daylight Saving Time.”

Manassas Geico Insurance Agent Dave Stinson is a big fan of Daylight Savings Time. “We love it! Sunlight energy is much more conducive to our business environment. We’re open until 7 p.m. and it’s nice to leave with extended daylight. The energy level is much higher. Darkness reflects evening and in many cases a slowdown,” Stinson said. “The Beatles said it best ‘it’s been a long cold lonely winter and I say all right, here comes the sun’. Daylight savings is great! You may quote me and the Beatles!”

Standard time returns Saturday/Sunday, Nov. 9 and 10, 2012.