If there’s an actual debate you’ve got to define terms. People’s definitions of ‘leftist’ can be pretty wild, especially if the debate is between an American and… mostly anyone outside America.

I have seen people waxing poetic about Imperial Japan and the Jakarta Method who consider themselves leftist, while at the same time associate outright NazBols with the left.

So ‘what do you actually mean by tankie/liberal?’ will usually cut through a lot of debate perv noise.