Al Gore and carbon offsets

Check out this story from the economist (read the part at the bottom).

It seems, from recent news stories, that Al Gore's concern about global warming may not be as sincere as he suggests. The more important part of the story, however, is how the market for emissions offsets has developed. You can, for a price, pollute as much as you want (like Gore) and purchase offsets that represent others' carbon privation.

The only problem is that, like in many other markets, there is an information problem. Many companies may be purposefully using high-pollution technologies so that they can capitalize on potential rents from carbon offset firms. In fact, carbon offsets may actually discourage firms from utilizing green technologies on their own.

Lastly, for those of you who love The Big Lebowski as much as I do, remember the words of the Dude: "You look for the person who benefits, and there they are." In other words, it's very interesting that Al Gore touts carbon offsets and green technologies when he is so heavily invested in the firms that are providing them. In reality, he is no better qualified to talk about the 'inconvenient truth' of global warming than George Foreman is to objectively compare grilling machines.