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>a radical is one who stands against the status quo. A radical is someone who is willing to use extreme measures to achieve their political objectives. Nothing

>a radical is one who stands against the status quo. A radical is someone who is willing to use extreme measures to achieve their political objectives. Nothing to do with the status quo. Totalitarian regimes, for example, usually maintain their status quo with radical zeal and measures.

inflatableDodo 7y ago
>A radical is someone who is willing to use extreme measures to achieve their political objectives. The Quakers are political radicals. They are so extreme they utterly refuse to kill people, even when ordered. edit - Given the article about it also on the front page, I thought I'd look it up in the original Mirriam Webster. The result is kind of interesting; >2. (Politics) >One who advocates radical changes in government or social institutions, especially such changes as are intended to level class inequalities; -- opposed to conservative. In politics they [the Independents] were, to use phrase of their own time. "Root-and-Branch men," or, to use the kindred phrase of our own, Radicals. Macaulay. http://lexicon.x10host.com/?w=radical http://lexicon.x10host.com/?w=radical And to contrast with my first port of call, in the Cambridge dictionary you get a politically neutral definition; >believing or expressing the belief that there should be great or extreme social or political change https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/radical https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/radical
- karlakush 7y ago
  The merriam webster definition is pretty alarming. I have never understood radicalism to have anything to do with class inequality or conservativism. A radical is simply somebody who espouses a rarely held opinion. The Cambridge definition is far closer to being accurate.
ahoy 7y ago
Radical as an adjective has to do with fundamental change. If you've seen someone use it the way you describe, I'd argue you've seen the word used wrong.

inflatableDodo 7y ago

>A radical is someone who is willing to use extreme measures to achieve their political objectives. The Quakers are political radicals. They are so extreme they utterly refuse to kill people, even when ordered. edit - Given the article about it also on the front page, I thought I'd look it up in the original Mirriam Webster. The result is kind of interesting; >2. (Politics) >One who advocates radical changes in government or social institutions, especially such changes as are intended to level class inequalities; -- opposed to conservative. In politics they [the Independents] were, to use phrase of their own time. "Root-and-Branch men," or, to use the kindred phrase of our own, Radicals. Macaulay. http://lexicon.x10host.com/?w=radical http://lexicon.x10host.com/?w=radical And to contrast with my first port of call, in the Cambridge dictionary you get a politically neutral definition; >believing or expressing the belief that there should be great or extreme social or political change https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/radical https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/radical

karlakush 7y ago
The merriam webster definition is pretty alarming. I have never understood radicalism to have anything to do with class inequality or conservativism. A radical is simply somebody who espouses a rarely held opinion. The Cambridge definition is far closer to being accurate.

ahoy 7y ago

Radical as an adjective has to do with fundamental change. If you've seen someone use it the way you describe, I'd argue you've seen the word used wrong.