[mlguy456]

I don't believe in "offsetting personal footprint". This idea appeals to personal guilt, while aims at filling the pockets of the founders. The solution should be going after companies who make products that break by design after certain time of use, thus forcing the customers to buy new items. If done right, this will be painful for both companies (many will have to close the shop) and for the people who are used to cheap shiny stuff, but the result will be a cleaner planet and healthier business model.

[cotap]

Not guilt. Not sin. Your logic is specious parroted re-hash from George Monbiot's failed thought leadership from the mid-2000's. Carbon dioxide is pollution and waste just like household garbage, recycling, and compost. When you offset you're cleaning up after yourself.

As with more tangible-seeming waste, it's always better to avoid and reduce before paying another party to deal with it. Yet CO2 is demonized because global warming is a collective externality. Because it's invisible doesn't make it intangible. Because the reductions can be counteracted by an entity that's in another location doesn't make a difference, either!