Yes, but I think a lot of his research was hit-and-miss, based on his own inadequate resources and the primitive state of data gathering in the 19th century. Plus, in terms of strict scientific methodology, Marx not doubt committed many procedural errors that would be unacceptable to modern researchers bound by strict universal scientific best practices.
But what really puts Marx in the category of preacher not scientist is his incandescent outrage. Clearly, he's a guy who's hopping mad about the exploitation of the proletariat and the tyranny of capitalists. He isn't a a true scientist -- a detached neutral observer who is simply interested in how the system works, not in making normative judgments about it.
Carl
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