Chilean activist destroys student debt papers worth $500m

[DinoDoc]

Value is a construct and can't be "refuted" in the traditional sense that a scientific theory can be refuted.

Economic theories aren't science anyway so that's OK.

[regexcellent]

They are, actually--although that gets into the question of "what is science" which has no satisfactory answer.

[Sava]

They are science. But they are a science that is mostly fueled by interpretation. It's an opinion science.

Evolution isn't anyone's opinion. It's a theory the way gravity is.

There's no comparison. It's not the same ballpark. To equate the two is just pure idiocy.

[regexcellent]

Again, you're completely wrong about that. There is no such thing as "opinion science." Economics, in particular that part of economics, has a massive and overwhelming body of evidence supporting it.

The question of whether science is fueled by interpretation is an ongoing matter of debate: look up "theory-ladenness." It's a central argument in the realist vs. anti-realist debate.

[Sava]

Again, you're completely wrong about that.

Hey man, I'm just repeating the generally accepted reality. If you have a problem with mainstream science, that's your own personal issue.

[Kidlicious]

They are science. But they are a science that is mostly fueled by interpretation. It's an opinion science.

Evolution isn't anyone's opinion. It's a theory the way gravity is.

There's no comparison. It's not the same ballpark. To equate the two is just pure idiocy.

Only people like you and Oncle Fakey think that.

[Fake Boris]

They are, actually--although that gets into the question of "what is science" which has no satisfactory answer.

Value simply isn't a scientific question.

[Fake Boris]

And economics is social science.

[regexcellent]

Value simply isn't a scientific question.

Value is a real concept with a real definition, and Marx had the wrong one. We can, actually, find out what people value--they value what they buy, for how much they pay for it.

It's trivially easy to deductively show that value can't be intrinsic from simple observation of the behavior that real people exhibit.

And economics is social science.

What is the difference between a science and a social science? Do you mean to say, also, that science reveals truth and social science does not? I thought you were the philosopher.

[DinoDoc]

If economics were indeed a science, Communism would have died off with the collapse of the USSR.

[regexcellent]

I don't see why that necessarily follows. Lots of people believe silly things about science. Are you saying that if people believe things that are wrong about a topic then it can't be science?

[Kidlicious]

Value simply isn't a scientific question.

Which doesn't matter. Economics isn't philosophy. We don't question whether or not value is real.

[DinoDoc]

I don't see why that necessarily follows. Lots of people believe silly things about science. Are you saying that if people believe things that are wrong about a topic then it can't be science?

I'm saying that Thomas Piketty and those like him would never gain the popularity and influence they have if the field they work in were actually a scientific field of inquiry.

[regexcellent]

Why?

And please, tell me what you think is a necessary and sufficient set of criteria for a scientific field of inquiry. I bet you can't find one that excludes economics but includes everything else you want it to.

[DinoDoc]

No, Economics Is Not a Science