In the middle ages it was common for rich Christians to purchase "Indulgences" lust, gluttony, sloth, perversion, sin of all sorts could be practiced with license, by first negotiating an "indulgence!"
The poor were not above sin but their salvation depended upon "Penitence" the cost of which was demanded by the church and could be considerably more expensive than the pre-negotiate "Indulgence."
It might help to think of "Indulgences" as license and "Penance" as fines.
When a Cleric wanted to indulge in the pleasures of the flesh, he would purchase "Indulgences" from his own parish. Having been pre-forgiven he could safely practice his own brand of hypocritical perversion without sin or real cost. The Cleric had only to take money from his right pocket and pass it to his left pocket. So much for history.
Now the more things change the more they stay alike.
The latest pop religion is of course "The Greens Reformed" as compared to "The Orthodox Greens." "The Greens Reformed" of course believing in "global warming" as opposed to "The Orthodox Greens" from 30 years ago who's' belief was "global cooling."
The self anointed profit of "The Greens Reformed," like the clerics of old has passions "The Greens Reformed" consider sinful. In his case, big houses, big Cars, SUV's, Private Jets, and Conspicuous Consumption. In order to live without sin while doing all those things he condemns the rest of us for, he has revived the ancient practice of selling "Indulgences" the so called "Carbon Offsets." Not forgetting the igneous and lustful Clerics who purchased their "Indulgences" from their own congregation, he's said to own the company selling the Offsets! Genius, but to be excepted from the man who claims to have invented the internet.
You may never become the Pope of pop religion, but be creative, like the parish priest of old! Pay for your next home or your buyers next purchase, invest in real estate, homes with room to plant trees and shrubs! A tree is a tree after all and even landscaping shrubs (just short squat trees) offset as much carbon as those on his lordships tree farms. Wind mills in the rural west offset as much carbon generating electricity as those in great wind farms that feed power nets.
Be creative! Recapture your cost! Set up an LLC and sell the rights to the carbon offsets produced by your landscaping and power generation for yourself and your clients properties!
Bill
William J Archambault Jr
The Real Estate Investment Institute
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