Carbon Trading......What????

Ok, it has been established that the house of environmental witch doctor Al Gore consumes 20 times as much energy as a normal person's house. But that's ok, because Al Gore buys carbon offsets. What? Thinking as hard as I can (when I should have been sleeping), I believe I understand what carbon trading is. In such a scheme, a central authority (usually a government agency) sets a limit or cap on the amount of a pollutant that can be emitted. Is there a standard formula for setting this cap? Nope. It seems to be arbitrary. Is there a way of measuring how much pollution a person or company puts into the air? Nope. The figures seem to come from the same place as flying monkeys do. Let's continue. Companies or other groups that emit the pollutant are given credits that represent the right to emit a specific amount. The total amount of credits cannot exceed the cap, limiting total emissions to that level. BUT companies that pollute beyond their allowances must buy credits from those who pollute less than their allowances. SO, if the arbitrary cap is 10 units of pollution and I am producing 12 units of pollution, I can buy the right to pollute more from somebody producing only eight units of pollution. Net pollution = zero. This transfer is referred to as a trade. In effect, the buyer is being fined for polluting, while the seller is being rewarded for having reduced emissions. So, money has changed hands. And how does that reduce pollution? I don't know. The pollution is still in the environment. Buying credits does nothing to actually eliminate it. In effect, no pollution has been bought or sold. The IDEA of pollution has. It's kinda like cattle futures. Hillary has never owned a cow in her life. But the IDEA of cattle has made her a bundle. Is this expensive? Noop. At current prices, a ton of CO2 costs about 10 bucks. Wow! What a deal! Where can I buy some? So. Although Al Gore pumps pollution into the environment at a rate 20 times that of a normal person, he buys enough carbon credits to reduce his NET pollution to zero -- even though that pollution is still in the air. It's like buying absolution from the Catholic Church. You've committed the sin, but the sin no longer exists, so your conscience is clear. Furthermore, Gore buys his credits from a company in which he invests, so it's like taking money from one pocket and putting it into another. He's doubly blessed. Whatta country! As O'Reilly would say, where am I wrong?