Is Economics Value Free?

Economics is not value free in practice, but should economics be value free, at least in principle? I used to think the answer was a clear yes -- we should do our best to promote positive analysis and avoid normative -- but in recent years I've become much more open to other possibilities.

I'm still not fully convinced that we should abandon the principle of promoting positive analysis over normative, I want to believe it's possible, but as it stands many people disguise normative conclusions behind positive analysis -- and these are some of the top people in the profession. (One of the reasons my views have evolved is the surprising and rather blatant political posturing hidden as economic analysis from some top economists on the other side of the political fence -- I refuse to sit by idly while those games are being played. It's also amazing how often economists get theoretical and empirical results that support their political leanings. I'd like to believe that their economics is pure and that it drives their politics, and not the other way around, but given how often prior political beliefs are confirmed through what is supposed to a scientific process, you have to wonder if we aren't more like lawyers arguing an ideological position than scientists in search of the truth. I'd also like to believe these behaviors can be eliminated over time through devotion to truth-seeking as a profession, but that may not be possible. If not, then pretending that we are pursuing purely positive questions and adhering to these principles simply plays into the hands of those with an agenda who know better. In my heart of hearts, I want economics to be a positive science, but that may be a hope that cannot be realized.)