The latest print edition of National Review features Oren Cass‘ warning about left-of-center technocrats and their unwillingness to accept evidence that contradicts their theories.
The failure of social science to produce the results that the technocratic Left “imagined hoping it would” has reached epidemic proportions. On many of our nation’s major domestic-policy issues, intense efforts to construct a rigorous scaffolding for a more assertive centralized state have yielded only piles of debris. “Evidence-based policymaking” was supposed to produce well-designed government programs with high returns on investment, justifying in turn further government engagement that would further lift the masses. Instead, it has shown how little we know, and how little our programs accomplish. …
… In many cases the findings are just statistically insignificant, meaning that the results were not clear-cut enough to support confidence in any conclusion. In some, the findings were mixed or provided results that conflicted with those of previous studies. These answers are best understood as “It depends” or “We don’t know.” …
… But neither technocrats nor demagogues have time for confusion, ambiguity, and humility. In the evidence-based-policymaking framework, results are supposed to dictate policy and expose all who stand in the way as heartless and dogmatic. How can anyone have a debate on the appropriate role of government, the importance of insurance in health care, or the competence of a federal agency to allocate resources nationwide without citing an analysis of exactly how many bodies the other side will strew in the streets?
