It seems like you do have a strong opinion on git merge vs. squash. You seem fairly convinced that one should adapt to local conditions and not doggedly stick to one of them. (You even go as far as saying that the latter is a signal of inexperience!)
For me I have found different paradigms to be useful. But sometimes just getting the team to agree on one system and one set of build tools can be an uphill battle. So sometimes you end up with 2 or 3 systems instead of one. For some things that is perfectly fine. But others it becomes a roadblock on bringing in new people. When starting a new job sometimes just where the bathroom is can be a bit of a chore much less trying to figure out what someone 3 years ago was arguing about and you just want to check some code in and get it reviewed. But when you first show up you probably at least want to get a lay of the land and figure out where the Chesterton's fences are before trying to 'fix it'. It could be they already had this discussion a few times. It could be they never considered it. But until you do it their way for a bit you will not be able to speak with any authority.
>You seem fairly convinced that one should adapt to local conditions and not doggedly stick to one of them
If there ever was an universal truth about any subject that's being dealt with by someone who knows even a little about said subject, it would be phrased approximately like that
"Don't be a zealot about $thing" shouldn't be considered a strong opinion
I remain a zealot about the harms of leaded gasoline and corruption, for example. Also the roundness of Earth, and the applicability of Newtonian physics at human scales. There are a large class of things you should be zealous about if someone offers opinion to the contrary!
