Wealth

President Obama has renewed talk of a higher minimum wage - he proposes $9 per hour instead of the current $7.25 federal minimum. Is it a good idea? These sites delve into the debate. States can set their own minimum wages, and most do, although if the state rate differs from the federal rate, the higher rate is the one that usually applies. The U.S. Department of Labor hosts an interactive map that shows the minimum wage in each state. New Jersey and Pennsylvania, for example, hold to the federal $7.25-per-hour rate.

One of Philadelphia's largest commercial landlords may be facing a battle over control. CommonWealth REIT , the Newton, Mass.-based owner of the 54-story BNY Mellon Center and 24-story One Franklin Plaza, had released its 2012 financial results Monday and disclosed plans to raise $450 million by issuing more shares. On Tuesday, two of the company's largest shareholders blasted that plan in a regulatory filing and urged CommonWealth to change its management structure, buy back stock, and deleverage its balance sheet.

Unless President Obama and Congress agree otherwise, $85 billion in across-the-board budget cuts are supposed to go into effect Friday. But debate over the so-called sequester - and just how draconian it might be - is confusing. For a brief history that seems pretty evenhanded, check out "The Confused Person's Guide to Sequester Politics" by political reporter David Wiegel at Slate.com. Wiegel traces the debate to its beginnings in the awful budget standoff during the summer of 2011, which was followed by the "fiscal cliff" and, now, another frustrating "manufactured" Washington crisis.

WHY WOULD a couple risk so much - respect and even freedom - for furs, furniture and a fedora? This was the question that came to my mind when I read the federal charges against Jesse L. Jackson Jr., the former congressman from Illinois. He pleaded guilty Wednesday to misusing about $750,000 in private campaign funds. Jackson's wife, Sandra Stevens Jackson, who resigned her seat on Chicago City Council, reached an agreement with the U.S. Attorney's Office to plead guilty to one count of tax fraud.

PITTSBURGH - Late last year, representatives from one of the world's largest energy companies went to the home of Lydia and Sam Mast. The company planned to drill a gas well on an adjacent property and needed to test the Masts' water. By November, the access road had been paved and the rig was drilling day and night into the shale formation thousands of feet below the Masts' seven acres in Lawrence County. "That was the first I knew there was a company called Chevron," Sam Mast said.

Saving money is hard, experts say, because you don't relate to your "future self. " Saving would be easier if you had more sympathy for that far-off old person that you are becoming. An "Investing 101" post in the Breakout section of Yahoo Finance, includes a video demonstrating one of several web tools that alters a photo of your face to show what you might look like at retirement age or beyond. The gimmick is meant to get people to identify with who they will be years from now - and to give that old person money.

Retirement accounts don't always last until retirement. That's a sad fact due, in many cases, to withdrawals and loans that many people take from IRAs and similar accounts. A study shows that $70 billion a year is withdrawn from retirement accounts by people who say they need the money to pay current bills, according to an NBC report posted here at CNBC.com. For those individuals, the long-term cost is staggering. That money - and the compound interest it would have earned - won't be there when retirement comes.

Weekly Rankings Each week The Inquirer college basketball staff will rank the City Six teams No. 1 through 6 and compare those rankings to those of the fans. STAFF VOTERS Staff voters are Joe Juliano, Keith Pompey, Mike Jensen, John Quinn, Marc Narducci, Gary Miles, Gary Potosky, and Jim Swan. FANS' RANKINGS Vote how you think the city's six teams should be ranked at philly.com/city6. Give a ranking from 1 through 6 for each of the teams. Results will be tabulated from Wednesday through Tuesday each week.