How would you approach persuading a far extreme liberal toward center? What would you set as a realistic goal for a productive discourse? Would it be better attempt to do so in person rather than online?
Do you Stalin think was an extreme liberal?
Of course not. An extreme liberal would be a neoliberal or ultraliberal, so basically the opposite of Stalin.
This is just America’s weird misuse of the word liberal to mean “progressive” or “socialist” or something.
Arguably true. But personally I prefer it when words mean something over time. The fundamental concept in liberalism, since the beginning, is a concern for individual rights. That was the revolutionary idea. Looked at this way, the word ultraliberal means exactly what it looks like: an obsession with individual rights taken too far.
The neoliberal etymology is murkier because it’s really an economic term.
In any case the vernacular American usage is of liberal to mean “left-wing” is just wrong, or at least unhelpful. I wish you guys would drop it and find a more appropriate word! Progressive being the obvious candidate.