Is it “extreme” not to compromise with advocates of coercion?

In this excellent piece, economics professor Richard Ebeling argues that there is no logical ground for painting classical liberals as “extremists” for not choosing to compromise with those who advocate a greater role for the state.

I agree with Professor Ebeling. Consider one of the hot topics of the day, the minimum wage. When statists demand that it be raised to over $10 an hour, should the true liberal say, “Too high — let’s compromise at $9”? Or perhaps, “OK, but let’s compromise on lowering the penalty for non-compliance”? No. It isn’t “extreme” to say that the government should not punish people for a failure to make contracts according to the dictates of politicians any more than it’s extreme to argue that the government should have no official church or that the government should not enact ex post facto laws.