[rbrogan]

But is the BS intentional and is it always necessarily false? Or can it be something that is hard to communicate? "The Way that can be spoken of is not the eternal Way." Is this bullshit? If so, how is this information able to propagate over the course of centuries?

Seems to me that one has to separate out what the speaker is trying to imply or impress versus what they are saying. Statistics can be true, but they can also be presented with the intention of impressing the audience with a view that is not true. That is being misleading. It is different from lack of rigor and loose communications.