You make a good point. A realistic definition of wealth is 1. Everyone is better off. 2a. Nothing of lasting value is damaged... 2b. ...*unless* that

You make a good point. A realistic definition of wealth is 1. Everyone is better off. 2a. Nothing of lasting value is damaged... 2b. ...*unless* that damage is accounted for and explicitly accepted by all concerned parties, including those who are not immediately involved in any negotiation. If you use this definition, very few things that are called wealth creation actually create real wealth. It's actually a stability consideration. Any wealth creation which attempts to grow and doesn't follow this definition cannot be persistent and stable, because damage will always tend to exceed the nominal wealth created.