hmmm... Life Insurance is one of those products where the consumer really needs to educate him/herself, understand the terms and shop around.
On a high level, a Life Insurance policy pays someone else when you die. So, it's now what
you need, but what your survivors may need. Yes, there is the cash value on some types of LI products, but I believe you can get better performance from other investment products.
My beef with LI products is the complexity and the expense ratio. To me it makes sense to have LI if you are young and have a young family, as income replacement for your spouse and to pay for education, healthcare or other needs of your survivors. Also, keep a small whole life policy for your final expenses and short term income replacement for when you die, enough to bridge until your survivors can settle your estate.
There may be other circumstances where LI policies may be a good fit, but for saving and investing, emergencies, and other cash needs, I think you're better off with an investment account (i.e. taxable, IRA, cash, 529, etc.)