>we have to use a definition of
>"unhealthy" which implies the subject to be unhappy
Why? Psychopaths don't feel unhappy, do they? The quickie definition of sociopathic personality disorder (the current term):
>[n] a personality disorder characterized by amorality and lack of
>affect; capable of violent acts without guilt feelings
>(`psychopathic personality' was once widely used but was superseded
>by `sociopathic personality' to indicate the social aspects of the
>disorder; `antisocial personality disorder' is currently the
>preferred term)
Of course in the literal sense high-end capitalists aren't sociopaths. They don't commit crimes in the literal sense, and don't demonstrate a pathological lack of affect. But the beauty of capitalist society is that they're insulated by many layers from the consquences of their decisions; Volcker could push interest rates into the teens without having to watch Latin American babies starve because of his action.
Years ago at a Rethinking Marxism conference, Joel Kovel did a nice presentation on the "capitalist ego" - a voracious beast with a hunger to amass, consume, and domiante, but in a socially acceptable way.
Doug