The Color of Money
BY JAMES TARANTO
Thursday, March 1, 2007 2:40 p.m. EST
Tennessee blogger Bill Hobbs picks up the story of Al Gores voracious household energy use, which we noted Tuesday:
The Tennessean reported that Gore buys carbon offsets to compensate for his homes use of energy from carbon-based fuels. As Wikipedia explains, a carbon offset is a service that tries to reduce the net carbon emissions of individuals or organizations indirectly, through proxies who reduce their emissions and/or increase their absorption of greenhouse gases. . . .
But how Gore buys his carbon offsets, as revealed by The Tennessean raises serious questions. According to the newspapers report, Gore buys his carbon offsets through Generation Investment Management:
Gore helped found Generation Investment Management, through which he and others pay for offsets. The firm invests the money in solar, wind and other projects that reduce energy consumption around the globe . . .
Gore is chairman of the firm and, presumably, draws an income or will make money as its investments prosper. In other words, he buys his carbon offsets from himself, through a transaction designed to boost his own investments and return a profit to himself. To be blunt, Gore doesnt buy carbon offsets through Generation Investment Managementhe buys stocks. . . .
Meanwhile, Gore runs around the country and the world trumpeting climate crisis and blaming mans use of carbon-based energyburning thousands of gallons of jet fuel as he goes. His efforts have served to put climate change at the top of the national and even global agenda, driving up the value of the stocks and companies viewed as green or environmentally friendly. Companies like those his investment management firm invest his own and other peoples [sic] money in. (You can see a list of Generation Investment Managements holdings here, courtesy of the U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission.) &
Why is it left to think tanks and bloggers to investigate and expose all this? Why arent the mainstream media all over the story? Could it be . . . bias?