“economic models are, or should be: guides, aids, assistants. But there’s a tendency for them to undergo definition creep: from guides, aids, assistants to axioms, rules, laws. On the lecture platform, economists will often say things like “My model shows . . .” The striking thing about that is the idea that a model can show something. A model can imply, suggest, guide, hint, invite us to conclude; but it can’t in that strong sense “show.”
―
John Lanchester,
How to Speak Money: What the Money People Say-And What It Really Means