>"Possibly the most fundamental distinction between economics and other fields is that, in economics, it seems to still be permissible to start with your conclu

>"Possibly the most fundamental distinction between economics and other fields is that, in economics, it seems to still be permissible to start with your conclusions and then work back from there. " This is only really true in the most contentious subjects studied in economics, and even then, I don't think economics is unique or even unusual in this respect. Unpalatable results go unpublished in many of the social sciences.