I think it's not so much that these are accounting abominations but that accounting is itself an abomination because it was created in the days of fixed income streams and constant interest rates and is wholly unprepared to deal with fluctuating markets in a sensible way.
Anyway, accounting is an abomination. Exhibit A: off-balance-sheet items. Exhibit B: contingent liabilities. Exhibit C: loss of control enabling repo 105. Exhibit D: "Goodwill", that is, "intangible assets". By laying out pros and cons we risk inducing people to join the debate, and losing control of a process that only we fully understand. - Alan Greenspan
