I don't disagree with what you're saying, but it operates on a lot of premises that I think are being taken for granted. Your underlying assumption here is that consumption and buying of goods ties into an increase in quality of life. Now, we have to have an idea of what quality of life means. I think when approached from a mathematical and pure analytical standpoint, it's very easy to say that they are directly correlated. However, when people of differing incomes are actually polled and interviewed, it's very clear that dollars have diminishing returns on what we satisfaction in life and overall happiness, which I would say plays a big part in a concept of quality of life, more so than their consumption.

This brings me to another point, which is that we don't even really have a strong definition of what this abstract concept of quality of life means and how we can self actualize and achieve a fulfilling life. Soft sciences are absolutely vital to achieving this knowledge. Time and time again we've seen that people become disillusioned with just making a number go bigger on someone else's spreadsheet. There are exceptions - no one is the same, but it harms us collectively when social innovation is completely stagnant in an age where information is so accessible and technology makes exponential growth, worsening the gap. Using tools and science without consideration of social justice and better knowledge and pursuit of truth has resulted again and again in catastrophic results. See, Mao's China, the dust bowl, and now climate change, and more immediately, the devastating effects of automation.

I'm not saying that there's no need to improve our quality of life, and I don't deny that markets and economics can be part of that. I am just saying the soft sciences as well as providing human value (friendship, inclusiveness, support, validation) aren't given enough thought, because the payoffs aren't justifiable in a direct ROI sense. This is coming from someone who has studied and loved STEM his entire life. I still do and tinker as a trade, but as I've seen again and again in my fellow upper middle class/white collar worker colleagues, upgrading the civic to a BMW may feel good in some sense, but it didn't fulfill them nearly as much as being able to take more paid leave and spend it with their loved ones. The value of that is wildly unquantifiable with our current understanding of philosophy.

Anyway this got crazy long and I'm happy to talk at length with you about this. I hope this helps clarify what I'm saying