This broad analysis of public accountancy examines the historical evolution of the discipline, arguing that it is both a business and a public service, and therefore Subject to the tension between the two facets of its operation. This tension is widely apparent in today"s climate of corporate accounting scandals, as corporate executives are handcuffed and accounting firms are implicated in their financial mismanagement. The authors pose the question Are public accountants simply profit-driven, self-serving window dressing for greedy multinational corporations, or is the profession doing the best it can in the face of difficult circumstances, trying to uncover monetary truth?