Carbon offsetting is the environmental equivalent of going to confessional. Obviously it's much better not to have sinned in the first place, but, if you do, a few Hail Mary's can certainly help atone for your misdeeds, taking the weight of the sin off your soul.
Terra Pass offsets the damage of your CO2-squandering misdemeanors, by funding planet-positive projects (such as wind farms) on your behalf. Their eco credentials are regularly audited by the non-profit Center for Resource Solutions, so you know your green guilt money is in goods hands.
You can give the gift of a guilt-free 2008 with Terra Pass' themed gift certificates. Their annual Road TerraPass promises a year of carbon balanced driving. Prices start from $29.95 to offset low mileage hybrid drivers, to $79.95 for high mileage drivers of large cars or trucks. Other options include the Flight Offset pass (ranging from $9.95 for a "puddle jumper" to $1,749.95 for the serious "aviator") and the Home Energy pass (ranging from $29.94 for a small home to $139.72 for a mansion dweller).
Offsetting is not like like sinning. I agree that we have to reduce as much as possible but at some level we all produce carbon. Anything that we buy produces carbon. Stop buying EVERYTHING. This is unrealistic, you just need to be a smart consumer about things and reduce as much as possible.
TerraPass is not the only offset provider either. There are numerous offset providers and you should be very careful to utilize the one that is best for you.
I made my New Year's Resolution to attend a free event in SF geared toward helping the average Joe reduce their carbon footprint called Energy Camp. Check out www.openeco.org/energycamp for tons more info.