cer, page-20

Ahhh TP,

I just read the article and some quotes if I may:

"But mark-to-market can cripple businesses when no market for an asset exists, like now".

The bean counters can make a meaninful argument that I agree with:

'There's no real market for the particular asset that I own...so I am NOT going to mark it to market. The market does not exist. Even at a firesale price some of these assets in question would not be sold. In a time of sanity where a real market exists I can likely achieve X price which is the current book value so I will keep the journal entry as it is'.

Basic accounting principals from my limited study of financial accounting:

1. Conservatism
2. Relevance
3. Reliability

You have to balance all of these. Surely slaughtering the books where no real "market" exists doesn't help anyone.

P.S. This is the kind of thinking that could have (or could still) save the Alternative Asset King....Babcock and Brown.