I was asked to tell my story. so here we go. Long story short version.

1)My Muslim neighbours. 12 years. The 1st few years were good. Broke bread. Many discussions over coffee on the deck. Kids were young, in school. Then the oldest boy married a girl from Lebanon, had children, who I loved with all my heart. And they loved me.
2)Oldest girl off to University in Edmonton. Social Justice studies. THAT’S when things started to change. Went to work for Omar Khadr’s lawyer. I noticed things. The little ones were not allowed to come and visit me. Hug me. They would whisper in Arabic right in front of me.
3)I was like WTF is going on here? Then 2nd son married a Russian Muslim. Many problems with getting her here to Canada. Offered a lot of moral support through that. When I welcomed her and her child, she turned away and went in the house. 🤔🤷🏻‍
4) I talked with my other neighbour about the changes. She had been a VERY good friend of Zalfa’s. Zalfa did not wear a hijab, wore jeans, sweatshirts. THEN. New Imam. Over night. Hijab, Arabic dress, etc. Wouldn’t go to her house. Kids not allowed over if they had eaten pork.
5)This was the same for other kids in area too. THEN, Bill the Dad, got increasingly vocal about Palestine. Rabid almost. Yelling. I was, again, WTF? I did not engage, just walked away. THEN, Zalfa, who I considered a dear friend, started ignoring me.
6) I was very hurt. I did not understand. I tried to approach her, but she would scurry away. I was very hurt that Little Willy was no longer allowed to visit. He would jump out of van and run to me. Yelling:” I missed you!” He was grabbed by the arm and taken in the house.
7) then Bill posted on my Facebook after I had shared an article(can’t remember what now) “Sharia Is looking better all the time?” I was like what? I ignored it, and took a screenshot. All these little events. Clip from 7 years ago now.
8)that I had let roll off my back, shrugging off, all added up when the 3rd daughter posted the announcement of Muna’s engagement to Omar. I was stunned, shocked, appalled. Never felt so betrayed in my life. I immediately blocked all of them. I was crushed.
9) I had followed Omar’s story from the beginning. Knew about his family under Chretien. Don’t give me this crap about child soldier. It’s bullshit. Needless to say, I was incredibly upset about it. My other neighbours were shocked, angry, and hurt as well.
10) This 3rd generation family, borrowed my Canadian flags, chairs etc. for their business EVERY Canada DAY! Which made no sense. Buy your own I thought. Went “home” to Lebanon 3-4 times a year. I always questioned that. Made no sense to me.
11) Then. 1 day, I looked out my home office window, and there was Omar. In my backyard. Looking in my window. I went ice cold. My dogs had been acting weird all morning. My phone started ringing. My neighbours. Can you see him? Why yes, YES I CAN FUCKING SEE HIM!
12) OMG, hubby was so angry. He is so laid back and easy going. Got home from work, went and told Bill right off. “How could you let your daughter marry a murderer?” The look on Bill’s face said it all. He knew. He knew what his family had done to all of us. Betrayed our country.
They have all left that little town now. Bill and Zalfa divorced. Their business was finally sold. Even some of my other Muslim friends shunned them. They treated their Filipino and Indigenous employees like SLAVES! So the last tweet. I am sure this story about Omar is not over!

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So, as the #MegaMillions jackpot reaches a record $1.6B and #Powerball reaches $620M, here's my advice about how to spend the money in a way that will truly set you, your children and their kids up for life.

Ready?

Create a private foundation and give it all away. 1/

Let's stipulate first that lottery winners often have a hard time. Being publicly identified makes you a target for "friends" and "family" who want your money, as well as for non-family grifters and con men. 2/

The stress can be damaging, even deadly, and Uncle Sam takes his huge cut. Plus, having a big pool of disposable income can be irresistible to people not accustomed to managing wealth.
https://t.co/fiHsuJyZwz 3/

Meanwhile, the private foundation is as close as we come to Downton Abbey and the landed aristocracy in this country. It's a largely untaxed pot of money that grows significantly over time, and those who control them tend to entrench their own privileges and those of their kin. 4

Here's how it works for a big lotto winner:

1. Win the prize.
2. Announce that you are donating it to the YOUR NAME HERE Family Foundation.
3. Receive massive plaudits in the press. You will be a folk hero for this decision.
4. Appoint only trusted friends/family to board. 5/
Imagine if Christians actually had to live according to their Bibles.


Imagine if Christians actually sacrificed themselves for the good of those they considered their enemies, with no thought of any recompense or reward, but only to honor the essential humanity of all people.

Imagine if Christians sold all their possessions and gave it to the poor.

Imagine if they relentlessly stood up for the widow, the orphan, and the foreigner.

Imagine if they worshipped a God whose response to political power was to reject it.

Or cancelled all debt owed them?

Imagine if the primary orientation of Christians was what others needed, not what they deserved.

Imagine Christians with no interest in protecting what they had.

Imagine Christians who made room for other beliefs, and honored the truths they found there.

Imagine Christians who saved their forgiveness and mercy for others, rather than saving it for themselves.

Whose empathy went first to the abused, not the abuser.

Who didn't see tax as theft; who didn't need to control distribution of public good to the deserving.

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Recently, the @CNIL issued a decision regarding the GDPR compliance of an unknown French adtech company named "Vectaury". It may seem like small fry, but the decision has potential wide-ranging impacts for Google, the IAB framework, and today's adtech. It's thread time! 👇

It's all in French, but if you're up for it you can read:
• Their blog post (lacks the most interesting details):
https://t.co/PHkDcOT1hy
• Their high-level legal decision: https://t.co/hwpiEvjodt
• The full notification: https://t.co/QQB7rfynha

I've read it so you needn't!

Vectaury was collecting geolocation data in order to create profiles (eg. people who often go to this or that type of shop) so as to power ad targeting. They operate through embedded SDKs and ad bidding, making them invisible to users.

The @CNIL notes that profiling based off of geolocation presents particular risks since it reveals people's movements and habits. As risky, the processing requires consent — this will be the heart of their assessment.

Interesting point: they justify the decision in part because of how many people COULD be targeted in this way (rather than how many have — though they note that too). Because it's on a phone, and many have phones, it is considered large-scale processing no matter what.