LETTER TO THE EDITOR: Is GM boasting sales or shipments?

OPINION:

I enjoyed the blog post on the true cost of the General Motors bailout but I have to ask: What else aren’t they telling us? (“Barack Obama: Losing $84 billion big success,” Web, Water Cooler, Thursday).

In my area of Colorado, the inventory on the local dealership lot has been going up. And it is my understanding that a manufacturer can recognize income and sales when they ship to the dealer. Of course, that is not an actual sale. So has General Motors really been making all this progress after all?

I am no accountant, but it appears that the receivables, or noncash current assets, have been building over the past two years. This could be an indication that all these wonderful sales we’re hearing about are simply inventory buildups on the dealer lots.

ROBERT HOLMAN

Alamosa, Colo.