If a company spends a large sum of cash to invest in equipment or another fixed asset, resulting in a loss that year on the income statement if they expense it$,$ have they really experienced a loss? Or have they simply traded one asset for another? How does this delineation relate to capitalizing an asset and spreading out the cost throughout its useful life? Do you feel the depreciation process is ethical? Or do you feel it hides the true cost of business from being fully transparent on the financial statements?