The time has long passed for this "insipid" argument that if one life/10 lives/100 lives/1000 lives are saved, it's all worth it. I can't even fathom the damage that will be done if we go into another extended lockdown. If you're asking something like this: "Is the loss of 100,000 lives worth not descending into another Great Depression," then my answer is "yes."
One of the consequences of a nation that knows nothing about history is that people think that whatever challenge they face is unprecedented and something that no one has ever faced. A century ago, five times as many Americans died in an epidemic that came at the end of a devastating world war. Americans didn't whine like we do now. There were no fainting couches when the toll hit 100/200/300/400/500/600,000. I'm unaware of any partisan finger-pointing when the deadly second wave hit. What happened to this country?