<prompt> Human: My parents have been in debt for as long as I can remember, both a sizeable mortgage and credit-card debt accumulated over many years. Theyre making it month-to-month, but worry often about how theyll pay bills.My father just got a modest inheritance from his parents. My parents are really excited, and want to use the money to buy a big-screen TV and make improvements to the house. I think they would be far better off paying off their credit cards, but Im not sure how to bring it up. I dont think theyd take kindly to me making suggestions about how they should spend their money, but Im concerned that their credit-card debt will just get worse if they dont take care of it. How have you encouraged your parents to have better spending habits? Should I even bring this up, or should I ignore it?  <response>: You could try dropping the hint, but only you know how likely they are to listen.If that fails you could try to steer them towards the home improvement part rather than the TV. At least that could if your lucky increase their equity in the house as opposed to a quickly deprecating tech purchase. 