I have this sense that econ ugrads are the beneficiaries of some of the finest, most rigorous academic work in the social sciences, and mistake the rigor of that work for their own.

For instance, I have this friend who is your classic trust fund kid. He's a nice enough guy, but he has his moments of douchebaggery. But he's super stinkin rich.

He honestly doesn't understand why someone wouldn't go to the doctor if they're sick. Or why they wouldn't take their car to the shop if it had a problem.

"Don't people know that if they don't fix a problem right when it pops up, it'll get worse?" he always says.

But see, he's been the beneficiary of his parents' money his ENTIRE life. If he wants or needs something, he buys it immediately. Now, he's come to think of his trust fund as HIS money. And indeed it is. But specifically, he's come to think of it as money he's EARNED.

That's my sense of economics undergrads. They think that because they've read the Discussion section, they're as smart as the people who wrote the paper (despite the fact that they don't understand any of the math or haven't read any of the cited material.

That's just my sense, though.