I don’t just mean outrage or regular rage, I mean shock that someone was to the left of “legal weed and free college but only for those that operate a successful business for 3 years in a disadvantaged community” 
takes.
I think federating took them by surprise, looking back. For about a week, those smug liberals were at a loss to even fathom what Hexbears were saying, and could only chant bullshit about how we’re Russian/Chinese bots.
Sure they still do that but they’ve slightly adapted to Hexbear presence.
If given the choice between Democratic Socialism and violent revolution, i believe almost anyone would pick the former rather than the latter. However you have to question how the current ruling class would attempt to fight the DemSoc reforms. I can’t really think of any example in human history where the ruling class has willingly abdicated power simply because the majority of the population asked them to.
Concessions can be achieved because of other socialists movements though, as this essay succinctly describes: https://redsails.org/concessions/
These should not be confused with wins of liberalism or dem-socialism, but wins fought for elsewhere by communists and able to be won by concession in the west.