DailyFinance

Filed under: Company News, Technology, DellWith apologies to Warren Buffett, it's only when the tide comes in that you learn who can swim. With waves of growth on the horizon for the tech sector, it's becoming increasingly apparent that Dell (DELL), the declining PC powerhouse, cannot swim. So maybe it's time for Michael Dell (pictured) to hit the showers....

Filed under: Economy, InvestingThe combined mortgage delinquency and foreclosure rates hit 14.41% on a non-seasonally adjusted basis -- the highest ever on record, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's National Delinquency Survey released Thursday. The MBA reported that in the third quarter of 2009, loans 90 days or more past due, loans in foreclosure and foreclosures started all set new records....

Filed under: Technology, Investing, Media, Google , Microsoft, FacebookFacebook looks like its worth close to $10 billion right now, based on actual transactions in the stock. The social networking site has seen its shares surge on an exchange for private companies, suggesting that the company is perceived to be headed in the right direction....

Filed under: ColumnsI recently wrote about my latest plan for averting financial disaster by selling one of the two vital organs currently processing urine and regulating electrolytes and homeostatic function on each side of my abdomen. After all, in these times, we all need to find ways to cut back....

Filed under: Economy, PeopleIt's rarely exciting to watch government officials testify before Congress. But Rep. Kevin Brady (R-Texas) managed to add a charge to a hearing held Thursday morning by the Joint Economic Committee when he told Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner that bailouts and rising unemployment had eroded lawmakers' and taxpayers' confidence in him and asked him to resign....

Filed under: Delta Air LinesThe Federal Aviation Administration suffered a "widespread" computer malfunction Thursday morning, sending key parts of the national air traffic control system haywire and affecting Logan International in Boston, Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta, and all three major airports in New York. Authorities said the pilots were having trouble retrieving flight plans....

Filed under: Company News, TechnologySometimes, high-tech isn't all it's cracked up to be. After a powerful "sonic cannon" was not "effective" in repelling Somali pirates in a high-seas showdown Wednesday, armed guards successfully battled the marauders off the good old-fashioned way -- with firearms -- said Vice Adm. William Gortney, who commands the Pacific region for the U.S....

Filed under: Company News, Investing, MediaIt seemed mighty curious when billionare Ron Burkle's private equity firm Yucaipa Cos. suddenly doubled its stake in Barnes & Noble (BKS) between November 10 and 13. Burkle last week scooped up more than 4 million shares of the bookseller -- boosting his stake from 8.3% to 16.3% -- at an average price of $20.05....

Filed under: Company News, Economy, Goldman Sachs Are you angry at Goldman Sachs Group (GS) for potentially paying itself $23 billion in bonuses a year after you rescued it from oblivion? If so, would you be willing to let go of that anger in exchange for a vague apology and a $500 million fund to help small businesses?...

Filed under: People, Goldman Sachs , Berkshire HathawayJust over 100 years ago, the sociologist Max Weber wrote his seminal book, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, in which he portrayed the pursuit of profit as virtuous and described work as a kind of religious duty. The attainment of wealth was seen as the fruit of labor, a blessing from God in return for hard work, piety and frugality....

Filed under: Economy, InvestingIn Hong Kong Wednesday, the Hang Seng index lost 0.3%, ending the day at 22,840. In China, the Shanghai Composite Index rose 0.6% to close at 3,303, while in Japan, the Nikkei Index fell 0.6% to 9,677.In Hong Kong, property companies led the decline, as fears that a property bubble pumped up by excessive speculation on the part of mainland Chinese buyers, may be looming....

Filed under: People, MediaIn case it wasn't perfectly apparent that it's a new day at BusinessWeek, the magazine's new owner, Bloomberg LP, cleared things up Tuesday with its appointment of a new editor in chief. The job will go to Josh Tyrangiel, who, as deputy managing editor of Time, had been overseeing the newsweekly's fast-growing online presence....