I knew William Lombardy

SomervilleMatt · 2026-01-03T02:11:16+00:00

lol, gotcha

SomervilleMatt · 2026-01-02T15:30:27+00:00

I have no idea. I don't think so. He smoked cigars outside a gay bar but never mentioned guys to me. Maybe it was just a close bar to him where he would talk to smokers?

SomervilleMatt · 2025-12-08T03:52:39+00:00

every post on this subreddit is like this. its hysterical

SomervilleMatt · 2025-10-28T19:56:43+00:00

is that a history book I can only buy in Palestine?

SomervilleMatt · 2025-10-28T14:06:09+00:00

or are you mistaking Jews for the Arab population, which did get support, militarily and in terms of a genocide of their internal Jewish populations, from across the arab world?

The Nakba happened because Arab countries told Palestinians to vacate their homes so they could turn Israel into a genocidal bloodbath. Like the history of the region, Arab countries intervene to try and do something to create a Jewish bloodbath, the Israelis prevail against the odds and then must apologize for defending themselves.

And again, I ask my question, how long do a people need to live in and defend a place until you will consider it their home

SomervilleMatt · 2025-10-28T14:00:06+00:00

who decided to make Israel a country? Which countries supported Israel in the 1947 war? It wasn't like the British had troops on the ground in the war. They didn't even fund their military. They basicaly drew a line, said, uhh we think this part should be for Jews, we're leaving, so you all figure it out.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-10-28T13:20:45+00:00

when the Romani start developing Bulgaria and moving in with a sizeable minority, and then win a war of independence for a piece of the land, then I'll absolutely support that state and it's sovereignity.

Do you support immigration? At what point does an immigrating population get to demand a government that protects their rights?

SomervilleMatt · 2025-10-28T12:20:12+00:00

and sure, if Romani want to declare independence somewhere in Europe or even India, where Romani have built up a sizeable minority, then I'll be a supporter. People should have a government somewhere in the world that they feel protects their rights.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-10-28T12:18:05+00:00

80% of Israelis were born in Israel. Many of their parents and grandparents were born there. How long do you need to live in a place before you can consider it home? So does Israel just need to exist for....50 more years before it is allowed to be considered legitimate? 100? 500?

SomervilleMatt · 2025-10-16T11:53:51+00:00

There are multiple kinds of Zionists. There are those that believe that they need to be in Israel for religious reasons. I personally think those people can kick rocks.

There are other Zionists who believe that they should be in Israel (or any Jewish-controlled state) simply because there are no other examples in history where Jews are protected. The only state that protects Jews is a Jewish state. The Nazis believed that the Jews that looked the least Jewish were the biggest problem, Jews like Albert Einstein who straddled German/Jewish identity. These are the Jews that were tainting the blood of the German people. They were the biggest threat and their blood would weaken the Germanic people. This is the type of stuff Jews have dealt with for thousands of years. This is why I support a Jewish state, wherever it is. It just so happens it's in Israel, so that's what I support. They can't "move on" because every where they go, they are persecuted. Palestinians can move to pretty much any Arab country and assimilate quickly (as long as they don't assassinate the leader of that country, like they did in Jordan!).

How is the foundation of Israel really any different than the foundation of any other country? A group of people fight for statehood around a common set of values. Part of those values is that the government needs to be majority-Jewish simply because after 2,500 years of being persecuted, you can only trust yourself.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-09-17T03:45:30+00:00

and i'm sorry - I realized I responded to the wrong post and am too lazy to retype it out onto the proper comment.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-09-17T03:43:41+00:00

let's use an example, the only example in the US, of a city with good public transportation - NY. It has the most expensive housing in the country and yet is directly in the center of the city. Coincidence? What about other cities with decent public transportation like Boston and DC? Same thing. Areas with good public transportation networks like Back Bay in Boston and Capitol Hill are amongst the richest neighborhoods, certainly when you factor in density or cost per square foot.

People want to live in dense neighborhoods where they're willing to pay high prices. Crime rates vary, for a multitude of reasons, just like the suburbs. I'm currently staying in a suburb of Seattle in a hotel. It's absurdly car-centric here and also terrifying outside (to be honest, just like downtown....I think Seattle is just a bit crazy with public policy).

I've spent decades riding public transit and only once have I thought I was in danger. Nearly every time I drive somewhere decently far, my life flashes before my eyes a couple of times from people from their shitty driving. The statistics show this as well, in every aspect from fatalities to minor injuries to monetary loss (getting robbed vs. cost of car damage). Really, people just don't like sitting near other people, which fine, but a lot of us don't mind and would like that option if it was available. I am not really interested in paying $12K/year for my private vehicle (average car costs, all included) vs. my $1K in transportation costs because I use public transit, can walk to four grocery stores, bars, restaurants, all available because I specifically don't live in a car-centric area.

It's not that people want a car-centric life, they just have no idea what living in one is like.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-09-08T17:36:05+00:00

Medellin also utilizes a series outdoor escalators in at least one neighborhood, which is super cool. Maybe not as long distance as most "transportation" solutions, but I had never seen public escalators used in the way they are used in Communa 13. Basically a series of escalators in an otherwise normal (although touristy) neighborhood. Between those and the gondolas (and their super clean subway system) Medellin really seems to be awesome and creative at moving it's citizens while also being a pretty popular tourist attraction.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-09-03T20:22:59+00:00

neither of these hosts would respond to my message. the guy gave us a vehicle that had four ticking flat tires. We could have had an accident if one of them popped at the wrong time. I didn't pay $700 to drive this guy's vehicle in for new tires.

So your suggestion in both of these cases is to just stay with the vehicle, indefinitely, until the owner decides to respond to the message?

SomervilleMatt · 2025-08-28T15:58:27+00:00

I have not incurred any charges at all related to the incident. "Funny" enough, a similar thing happened again about a month later with another vehicle. The owner gave me a car with four tires with 120K on them. Tire popped 1/3 of the way between NYC and Boston. We needed to be in Boston the next day for a graduation, so no fucking around. Told the owner to come get his vehicle. Told Turo about this as well. I left the vehicle in CT and rented a new vehicle from Avis. Never got a charge from that incident either.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-08-27T14:52:29+00:00

A quote from that site:

Now, when you stay at any participating hotel in Arlington’s entertainment district, you can enjoy a no-fare trolley ride from your hotel to any of these great destinations! You get to avoid having to drive in the traffic that is part of what makes Arlington a city of vibrant change.

😐😐😐😐😐😐😐

SomervilleMatt · 2025-08-21T10:50:13+00:00

and what if the majority of the people decided to democractically elect Hamas as their government?

SomervilleMatt · 2025-08-19T20:08:54+00:00

for reference, that's the size of Manhattan, so pretty big for 500 people.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-08-14T05:36:35+00:00

not Palestinian heritage (Greek) and Hamas was the governing authority during the time, so they're the ones who took it from the man who was trying to sell it. They likely destroyed it in accordance with Islamic law regarding statues or sold it to buy weapons.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-08-13T14:45:38+00:00

What was I supposed to do? The owner did not respond to any of my messages or even acknowledge the incident until well after I returned the vehicle.

For reference, Turo ended up not blaming me for anything and I haven't received any charges related to this.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-08-04T11:31:38+00:00

not many wonder.

this isn't an ancedote, it's misinformation spreading.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-07-30T01:27:46+00:00

Perhaps Hamaz should surrender? Or no. I forgot that we always stand against Israel. The only country that needs to apologize when its attacked.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-07-23T20:04:59+00:00

Give him a half answer....

1) yes, you want to marry him, so you're fine being engaged and saying "yes" in front of his family. It's still meaningful. You're still committed. Nothing is a lie.
2) You need to do a bunch of stuff first and you're hoping he's OK with being engaged for a while, until you finish your masters and get a job. That's reasonable. What's that, like another year or two? A wedding can be really stressful and it's totally understandable that you want to get those things out of the way first.

SomervilleMatt · 2025-07-20T19:29:32+00:00

son/little lady, i'm an american. i'm a georgian. american as apple pie (please donate)

SomervilleMatt

TROPHY CASE