Centrist blogger asks when is it okay for a "moderate" to go "radical?"

[BurtWorm]

http://www.centristcoalition.com/blog/archives/002214.html

"Centrism is only possible when political institutions force extremists to compromise. The tools which create that situation are things like the filibuster, competitive elections, and other entities which give the minority power. When dominant groups try and abolish these checks, moderates have an obligation to use their non-partisan credentials and oppose the effort tooth and nail. I'd also suggest that when matters of basic human dignity are at stake, moderates cannot go for consensus. I actually think this can be subsumed under the procedural fairness standard. Where one group, whether it is by genocide in Africa or by discrimination in America, is being relegated to second-class citizenship (or worse) and is thus effectively removed from the structures of political deliberation, democracy cannot reasonably be said to exist. Moderates thus cannot compromise on laws and policies that offend the equal dignity and respect of citizens of the US and the world."