A significant number of baby
boomers are blowing their way through their kids’ inheritances, and they’re doing it guilt-free. Some do it with the blessing of well-off children who don’t need anything, but
the justification is usually something along the lines of “Hey, you only live
once” or “We worked hard for it! Why should someone else enjoy it?”
You can argue the morality of such a move both ways. On the one hand, giving certain children a
pile of unearned money is like throwing it into a black hole. Neither you nor
they are really benefiting long term.
On the other hand, there is a venerable tradition of putting something aside for
the coming generations. That time-honored custom did not develop for no reason.