In short: Readily available low-cost life insurance would be a threat to the industry, and whatever threatens the life insurance industry threatens America.

You want 21 percent risk free? Pay off your credit cards.

No wonder lawyers, who control the legal system, have fought so hard, and with great success, against "no fault" insurance. No fault, no lawsuits. No lawsuits, no lunch.

The first American insurance company was the Friendly Society for the Mutual Insurance of Houses Against Fire, founded in Charles Town in South Carolina, in 1735.

Still, most people don't have much money. So finding ways to come out a couple of thousand dollars ahead every year still matters.

Rule of thumb: The more trimmings an insurance plan has and the harder someone is pitching it, the faster you should run.

The larger the deductible you choose, the less insurance you are buying. Insurers want to sell insurance.