You put forth a rather ambiguous proposition. What exactly do you mean by "content"? Are you merely resigned to your lot in life? If you don't feel any more productive, energized or empathic, are you not happy? If, as you say, you've struggled to find any benefit in happiness, how then can you be happy? If you don't find joy in life, you must be miserable. Either that, or your entire line of thought is simply inane.

Happiness has proven, substantial health benefits; whereas unhappiness has an entirely negative effect on health, both physiologically and mentally. From a productivity point of view, there is a decided improvement in production when one is happy, as countless studies have shown. Miserable people make miserable workers, and a miserable environment makes for an unproductive environment.

Again, your proposition is rather nonsensical, unless of course you are a nihilist, in which case your entire discussion is meaningless.

People aren't only moral or immoral, they can be amoral. Same with happiness. Just because something doesn't have a name, doesn't mean it doesn't exist.

I think you're confusing hope with happiness.

No, I'm quite sure I'm not confusing hope with happiness.

It would seem, rather, you do not know the meaning of happiness. Otherwise, you wouldn't be questioning whether there is a benefit to it. There is nothing noble or meaningful in being miserable.

condor wrote: Content means I don't have to finish everything I start, I don't have to have adrenalin flowing, I can settle for achieving 98% of my potential. I don't need the compulsion to excel, without feeling empty.

I fail to see how that has anything to do with happiness; unless, of course, leaving things unfinished and doing things half-ass makes you happy. It doesn't sound like it to me. Rather, it's seems like you've acquiesced to your half-assedness and made yourself believe that it is okay.

I'd argue happiness is actually detrimental to society. If we consider how f**ked up the world we live in is, happiness only favours the status quo. Happy people most likely won't try to take actions to change a system that's flawed as they're comfortable in their happiness. They won't try to improve their situation or that of others or even of the Earth. Of course it's not always as simple as that but I think the generalization in this context is relevant. Only if we lived in some kind of idyllic world would happiness be beneficial not only to the individual but to society as a whole.

I'd also like to mention that  for me happiness is a fleeting emotion which is nothing more than pleasant. I found that there are much more powerful, "fulfilling" and "important" emotions than mere happiness.