From: Tony Tinker (TonyTinker@msn.com)
Date: Tue Oct 29 2002 - 11:08:37 EST
Dear Jerry et. al, Accounting numbers may be tempered by reality, but there is no strict correspondence between the fortunes of businesses, and the figures in the financial statements. Accordingly, a degree of subjectivity underpins all accounting disclosure, and what is published, and what is allow 'by the rules', is always subject to negotiation (between the auditor, client, SEC, FASB, and sometimes Congress). That said: yes you can reconstruct the numbers to obtain a better piclture (but you need a decent accounting education to be able to do that). If you'd like to see more stuff on the accounting specifics at Enron, I've prepared a PowerPoint & HTML presentation at : http://zicklin.baruch.cuny.edu/critical/. Just follow "Enron: the Movie!" link on the homepage. If anyone would like a copy of a paper that provides a fuller exposition of the accounting issues: "Enron Lays Andersen", that is currently under review, let me know and I'll send a copy. Tony Tinker Professor and Editor Critical Perspectives on Accounting The Accounting Forum Baruch College: CUNY Box B12-225 17 Lexington Avenue New York, NY 10010 Email: TonyTinker@msn.com Tel: 646 312 3175 Fax: 646 312 3161 Critical Conference Site: http://zicklin.baruch.cuny.edu/critical/ ----- Original Message ----- From: gerald_a_levy To: ope-l@galaxy.csuchico.edu Sent: Tuesday, October 29, 2002 6:34 AM Subject: [OPE-L:7867] accounting for value Alejandro and Tony -- thanks. I'm very happy that you found the link in [7862] and other posts to be useful. Tony -- has there been any discussion amongst radical accountants about the implications for Marxian empirical works on value of the Enron, Anderson et al affairs? How do we know that the numbers generated by corporations and the state are "real" and aren't "cooked"? Are there any steps that Marxists who are engaged in this field should take to qualify or modify the data? In solidarity, Jerry Critical Conference Site: http://zicklin.baruch.cuny.edu/critical/
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