You're sitting in a freshly dry-walled house, drinking coffee from a Styrofoam cup and talking on a cellphone. Which of these is most likely to be a cancer risk?

At last week's Morningstar Investment Conference, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink told a room full of journalists he's not confident 401(k) participants have what it takes to be long-term investors. I'm paraphrasing, of course, but it seemed to be a common issue at that Chicago show.

Sometimes the honey of humor gets more response than the vinegar of intellect.

An Illinois legislative panel approved a temporary health insurance plan Tuesday that officials say will increase options and decrease confusion for nearly 200,000 state employees and retirees, many of whom saw their coverage put in limbo by a court decision last week.