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> You don't see leaving something for your kids/family to improve their lives as meaningful? I don't require a reward after death to want the best for my wife/k

> You don't see leaving something for your kids/family to improve their lives as meaningful? I don't require a reward after death to want the best for my wife/kids. Lacking a family, why not charity? Corporations and the government are, short sufficient (0.1%) wealth to protect your assets upon death, finding ways to confiscate any left over wealth, and prevent it from transferring to children/spouses/charity/etc. Medicaid cost recovery, for example.

scottLobster 4y ago
Given that last year I inherited a substantial amount of money from my deceased great aunt that was tax-free, clearly they haven't succeeded in that just yet. And they probably won't, I don't see how taxes on middle-class inheritances win elections with either party. Sure perhaps we are heading to a Cyberpunk 2077 dystopia, but there's no guarantee of that. Even in such an apocalyptic dystopia, where every non-0.1 per-center's family wealth is directly or indirectly confiscated, I foresee a thriving black market for money-laundering and other services, and knowing how to navigate it will be routine for the successful and expected by the powerful. Regardless, my family will be as best positioned at my death as I can manage. I can only manage so much. There's no use in living life assuming an extinction-level asteroid strike or similar. Worst case scenario at least I'll have done my best, the alternative is stagnation and despair, stuck in an endless cycle of wondering if I could have done better interrupted by periodic hedonistic numbing with vacations/video games/alcohol/other vices. I already did that for most of my twenties, it was perfectly rational (given my circumstances at the time), miserable and unproductive. Much worse than having some assholes steal all my shit at the end of my life, which I don't think is terribly likely anyway.

scottLobster 4y ago

Given that last year I inherited a substantial amount of money from my deceased great aunt that was tax-free, clearly they haven't succeeded in that just yet. And they probably won't, I don't see how taxes on middle-class inheritances win elections with either party. Sure perhaps we are heading to a Cyberpunk 2077 dystopia, but there's no guarantee of that. Even in such an apocalyptic dystopia, where every non-0.1 per-center's family wealth is directly or indirectly confiscated, I foresee a thriving black market for money-laundering and other services, and knowing how to navigate it will be routine for the successful and expected by the powerful. Regardless, my family will be as best positioned at my death as I can manage. I can only manage so much. There's no use in living life assuming an extinction-level asteroid strike or similar. Worst case scenario at least I'll have done my best, the alternative is stagnation and despair, stuck in an endless cycle of wondering if I could have done better interrupted by periodic hedonistic numbing with vacations/video games/alcohol/other vices. I already did that for most of my twenties, it was perfectly rational (given my circumstances at the time), miserable and unproductive. Much worse than having some assholes steal all my shit at the end of my life, which I don't think is terribly likely anyway.