> But I can't see what is what "the economy" has given to us in return.

Stuff. You like stuff, I like stuff. If you had more stuff of one kind you could do different stuff, good stuff, even. And the people out there doing good stuff could do even more if they had more stuff to do it with. Everywhere you look, people like stuff. People with more stuff are happier on average, every time it's measured. People with serious stuff deficits end up being the ones to start wars, even.

"The Economy" is just the stuff. There's no magic here. You're imagining a villain, but it's all just stuff.