He reported that welfare provided outside of poor-houses created paupers. There are valid historical reasons for this bifurcation. Many courses are required to earn a degree in statistics. There wasn't time for much else. Newspapers, radio, television, and the Internet are filled with claims based on some form of statistical analysis.
Calcium is good for strong bones.
Watching TV is a major cause of childhood and adolescent obesity. Food stamps and WIC improve nutritional status. All because someone got hold of a dataset from somewhere and looked for associations. Freedman points out that statistical demonstrations of causality are based on assumptions that often are not checked adequately. The rules for claiming causality vary from field to field.