[droithomme]

So they spent an absolute fortune on things which might be cool but really contributed nothing to the economy except construction and employment. And the argument is that because they wasted such a huge amount on these vapid endeavors, an incredible proportion of the entire economy, that therefore they should continue because it is "contributing" to the economy by virtue of its spending.

Give Universal Basic Income to everyone. That will spend more and then we can say with the same reasoning that UBI is worth more to the economy than retail and financial services.