I'm almost always a rather confident descender on paved surfaces, as long as they're not too cracked or covered with sand or mud. I'm not hitting 60 mph anymore, but my use of the brakes is generally limited to tight corners and changing conditions (like a sudden adverse crosswind).
When I ride offroad, I'm a much more, um, prudent descender, electing to take some steep dropoffs via foot or keep the speed and control well within the envelope on rock gardens or loose scree. When the kids pass me on their super-long-travel plastic bikes, I smile, wave, and simply say "I don't bounce anymore." I've only gone down a couple times on a trail, fortunately without serious injury, but both times were more then enough to remind me of what could possibly happen. I don't want to end up like a late friend of mine who had a bad half-second on a familiar trail and shattered his hip joint. He was never right after that.