By Frank Shostak
Most economists subscribe to a belief in “positive economics,” which means that economic theory flows from economic data. Thus, all theory can be tested for falsification at any time. Austrian economics, however, begins with economic theory, which is used to interpret the real world.
For clarity, Austrian economics is "positive" (as opposed to normative) in the sense that it is descriptive rather than prescriptive. It is not "positive" in the sense of Logical Positivism, which holds that the only meaningful claims are those which can be verified empirically.
Does the data even reflect the real economy?
There are tons of different datasets. Some are much higher quality than others.