Free Market Carbon Offsets: Auctioning Your Offsets on eBay

Filed Under: Do It Yourself, Environmental News on June 11, 2009

Here ya go. A guy is auctioning his carbon offsets on eBay in a truly free market solution (versus Al Gore’s “gimme money for nothing” solution). The man, who lives in Rochester, Minnessota, has not driven his car for a year and a half (since 2007). He figured the carbon offsets, using a popular online calculator, to be $288.

He’s already done the work, now he’s looking for the reward. For a year and a half, he’s been biking and walking to work and back. He’s started the bidding at $100 and the auction runs until next Thursday (June 18). Shipping is free. haha

So for your bid, what you get is the knowledge that someone has paid the price for your driving habits (he drove 19,000 miles per year before). Pretty sweet deal.

If you buy into the whole global warming by CO2 Al Gore thing, then this is definitely an auction for you. Those of us who don’t can ignore it and keep on with our lives. See? A truly free market solution to the problem. As opposed to government force through taxation or regulation.

On a wider scale, this type of market solution would allow you or your group, non-profit, etc. to calculate the carbon offsets required for someone in your community who doesn’t subscribe to the CO2 greenhouse thing. You could then raise enough money to offset that and/or do like this guy’s done and offset it yourself. Wow. A free choice scenario.

Unlike Al Gore and his minions, people who think this way realize the power of real persuasion, real markets, and actual liberty. Most Gorebots would prefer to just stamp you with a jackboot and steal your wallet. All in the name of saving the environment, of course.

So there you go. A free market solution done by someone who really believes in saving his environment in his own way. Nicely done, compex2009!