There is a mad race today to equip our credit cards and our cell phones to act as credit devices, allowing us to merely wave our credit or debit card or smart phone at a vending machine to have it deduct the price of the object from our bank account or add it to our credit card account.

FORBES: GAO Proposed Ditching Dollar Bill in Favor of Coin

Of course, all of these exclusions from income come with a price: since life insurance is considered a personal expense, you cannot deduct the premiums you pay for life insurance policies on your federal income tax return.

FORBES: Taxes From A To Z (2013): L Is For Life Insurance