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DCL
'Tis the season to be jolly...and cold. Hopefully you, and everyone you know, have found a suitable winter coat to get you through this chilly season. While the economy is weak and there are still people everywhere who can't even afford a winter coat, the reality is this: much of our culture is driven by consumption. Many of us not only have a winter coat, but we have a few.
Are those extra coats necessary? Nah, not really.
If you have more than a casual winter coat and a dress winter coat, it's time you figured out what to do with all of those extra winter coats.
There's nothing green about clutter and there's certainly nothing green about rat-packing away warm coats in the winter when others are stuck shivering without help.
My challenge to you: Go through your closet...today, if possible. Evaluate your winter coat collection and think of it in terms of what you actually need. Take the remaining coats and donate them. Lots of cities hold coat drives during the winter. If you can't find a coat drive, donate your spare coats to a store like Goodwill or Salvation Army (NOT a high-end 'vintage' store that will resell your coat for more than a person in need could pay).
The goods we choose to produce all end up somewhere in the cycle, but we can determine what sort of pit-stops these items make in that cycle, how much use they get along the way. Will your spare coats collect dust in your closet? Will they decorate a landfill? Or will you take action and see to it that they keep someone warm this winter?
