As I drug my tired self out of bed early this morning, I realized just how much I miss that extra hour of sleep and how much I really hate Daylight Saving...

It's not just the sleep deprivation that bugs me, it's remembering to change all the clocks (especially that darn clock in my car that I won't be able to figure out until July). And, I know this doesn't apply to me, but, for many of you, it means driving to work or school in the dark for the next several weeks...

So, why do we put ourselves through this torture twice a year? Daylight Saving is really an energy saving tactic. It was originally put in place in WWI and WWII (permament in 1974) to help conserve energy by shifting daylight ahead one hour. The theory is that by doing so, we'll use lights less often since most of us will be at work during daylight hours.

But, check this out, it turns out that we may be going through all of this trouble, FOR NOTHING!

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In 2007, a University of California-Santa Barbara economics profressor has evidence to prove that Daylight Saving saves NOTHING! Matthew Kotchen and Ph.D. student Laura Grant were given a unique way to study this shift and the economic effects...

After decades of not particiating, Indiana Legislature decided to put their entire state on Daylight Saving Time beginning in spring of 2006. This gave the economics prof and her student a chance to see any the difference by monitoring over seven million monthly meter readings fro Duke Energy Corp. in over 70 counties in Indiana.

Their findings: switching to Daylight Saving actually increased electricity bills by $8.6 million for the year. Residential energy consumption rose, on average, 1% to 4% from the previous three years.

They concluded that the reason for the increase was the cost of running air conditioners on hot afternoons and heating costs from cool mornings more than offset the reduced cost of lighting areas.

This isn't the first time that a study has been done about the use of Daylight Saving. In 1976, the National Bureau of Standards concluded that there were 'no significant energy savings' during Daylight Saving months.

Supporters protest the study claiming that it is one study from one part of the country. They believe that cooler areas further north may benefit a bit more from the time shift.

Also, supporters claim studies that Daylight Saving brings less crime, fewer traffic accidents, more recreation time outside and increased economic activity. However, the recent study in Indiana did not look into these factors.

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So, for 30+ years, we may have been putting ourselves through this nuisance of a time shift for NOTHING! And, ironically enough, the U.S. government actually INCREASED the amount of Daylight Saving Time last year (which is why it's starting so early this year).

I say, it's time to repeal this old, obsolete, useless time turnaround! If anyone decides to start a petition to end Daylight Saving, let me know. I'll be the first one to sign it...