Iâm a bug eater just cuz they have it coming
Maybe. I guess the problem is that the word âcentristâ in and of itself is irredeemably vague.
What is a centrist? Someone who wants to keep things exactly as they are? Thatâs a conservative.
The âmedianâ political position of the Overton window? In the USSR or China, a âcentristâ position would be some kind of Marxist position.
Can we please just use clearer words? You want to talk about social democrats? Fine, do that (I wish they werenât our âfar leftâ in the US). Plenty of comrades can give a great discussion about them (they at least pretend to care, although they unfortunately can align with the fascists too much). But do you consider a social democrat to be the meaning of âcentristâ in contemporary German politics?
I agree that the term is pretty vague. I use it mainly as the opposite of the term âextremistâ. And thatâs kinda the point i think, it does not clearly define a set of political opinions, but rather describes any moderate position with a general willingness to compromise and cooperate, a commitment to democracy, as well as condemnation of political violence.
So while in contemporary German politics, I wouldnât equate social democrats with centrists, I would say that they are the most centrist party currently in parliament.
I absolutely donât mind using other terminology, but I do believe that the term âcentristâ can be useful sometimes. And after all, this post being about centrists is the reason we are talking about the term in the first place.