Mark Thoma — Why Economists Can’t Always Trust Data

Why economics is not a science, other than in very narrow studies where reliable data can be obtained with a reasonable degree of assurance. That excludes most areas of interest and contention in economics, the consequence that economics resembles philosophy more than science and ideology prevails in choice of assumptions and method.

This will likely improve in the Information Age, with Big Data and the development of AI. But we aren't there yet and probably never will be regarding historical data, where context has been lost.

The Fiscal Times
Why Economists Can’t Always Trust Data
Mark Thoma | Professor of Economics, University of Oregon