Which is worse: WorldCom or Congress?
Walter Williams writes, "Is WorldCom really America's biggest case of accounting gimmickery and deception? I don't think so.
Ask the president or any congressman: How much debt does the federal government owe? Nine will get you 10 that they'll tell you that it's $3.5 trillion. If they had just a tad of sophistication or honesty, they might add intragovernmental debt that'd bring the "total debt" to slightly more than $6 trillion. Even that figure represents a level of creative accounting, deception and lies that make the actions of Enron and WorldCom seem like child's play....
Let's compare what happens when deceptive accounting practices are discovered in private industry versus when they're discovered in government.
Without the SEC, the supposed guarantor against corporate hanky-panky, lifting one finger, the market has exacted high penalties. Enron and WorldCom shares of stock and their reputations are virtually worthless. Heads have rolled.
By contrast, what happens when Congress cooks the books and deceives Americans into believing that government debt is $3.5 trillion or $6 trillion, when it's really $35 trillion? Absolutely nothing."