Of course disagreeing with the mainstream is disagreeing with the regime-stream. It is the regime that sets the parameters for responsible discourse--that being what C. Stuart Mill called "crackpot realism." And what could be more crackpot-realist than for a nation, even one beset by economic calamity such as ours, to fund and maintain a worldwide military empire?

I find Joseph Sobran's definition of extremist most apt. "If you want government to intervene domestically, you’re a liberal. If you want government to intervene overseas, you’re a conservative. If you want government to intervene everywhere, you’re a moderate. If you don’t want government to intervene anywhere, you’re an extremist."