[cs702]

No respectable author would dare ask such a question about the effectiveness of, say, theoretical Physics, Computer Science, or the Theory of Evolution -- to name other bodies of theory familiar to general audiences.

The fact that the question is being asked about Economic Theory in a respectable, prominent magazine like National Affairs provides the answer.

[CalChris]

Provides what answer? Is National Affairs a respectable, prominent magazine? I'd never heard of it. Founded in 2009, it has a circulation of about 10,000 [1]. At $27.99/yr, it clearly doesn't pay for itself. It looks like a small media outlet, a sinecure for right wing writers and editors, and financially supported by Irving Kristol [2].

[1] https://newrepublic.com/article/112745/yuval-levin-rights-ne...

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_Affairs

[jostmey]

I disagree! Many of the fields you mention are tested through experimental observation. Often times, the outcome is a clear binary response. Hell, I've even seen bacteria evolve antibiotic resistance first hand.

When it comes to economic theory, scrutiny becomes of paramount importance if you are going to make laws based upon it!

[frgtpsswrdlame]

>No respectable author would dare ask such a question about the effectiveness of, say, theoretical Physics...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Trouble_with_Physics