Accounting Shenanigans?

I would not lay at all on the accounting shenanigans. The pension fund accounting that applies very heavily at some companies and of course most newer companies don't have pensions. Companies that started in the last 20 or 30 years are much more inclined to have various kinds of profit sharing or 401ks. Take general electric. There's been a deliberate increase in financial leverage which was made possible by the wonderful and deserved reputation. That sort of thing does wonders for returns on equity as reported.