In passing, what is science?

I just read this as I was doing some research for a paper:

"Ethnographic research on the structure and culture of urban communities and some subcultural theories of crime suggest that the nature of violence is shaped, at least in part, by community characteristics. Yet, beyond these suggestive accounts, this issue has not been examined systematically in empirical research." - Baumer et al., Criminology 41(1), 2003

In other words, no observation may enter into the realm of social scientific knowledge until it has been examined statistically. Some day, I would love to put together a compelling reason to disagree.