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  <title>Thursday Bram</title>
  <id>https://thursdaybram.com/</id>
  <updated>Sun, 01 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000</updated>
  <author>
    <name>Thursday Bram</name>
  </author>
<item><title>Phreeli: an early analysis</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2026_02_01_phreeli_an_early_analysis.html</link><guid>970572a5-0d6e-5f35-a7b7-38888b900250</guid><pubDate>Sun, 01 Feb 2026 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Available to download as a &lt;a href="static/zines/Phreeli risk analysis.pdf"&gt;PDF&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Phreeli&lt;sup id="fnref:1"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:1"&gt;1&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; launched as a new wireless service in December 2025, promising significant privacy and security improvements on other providers. The goal of this analysis is to evaluate whether activists, organizers, and other people facing government repression should use Phreeli in the immediate future. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;The information available&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Evaluating brand new tools can be difficult: we can't look to past behavior, we can't compare past audits to current performance, and we can't even look at customer service complaints to spot trends. The information available about Phreeli at time of writing is limited to:
- Phreeli's website and marketing materials
- Phreeli's sub-reddit (currently containing 11 posts, although there appear to have been additional posts requesting support that have been since deleted)
- A handful of articles from tech news sites (the most in-depth of which is behind Wired's paywall&lt;sup id="fnref:2"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:2"&gt;2&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;)
- A few posts on community and personal sites that amount to speculation&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;An in-depth analysis of Phreeli just isn't possible yet. Most potential users concerned about privacy and security likely should wait to use any new wireless provider until external audits and other data are available. However, an initial analysis of these materials and of materials relating to people involved in the company does have value, both for identifying possible concerns Phreeli may face moving forward and to consider the trustworthiness of Phreeli as an organization. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;The network&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Phreeli offers fairly standard wireless plans, including unlimited calls and texting, along with data. But the company doesn't have its own cellular network or towers: it's reselling T-Mobile's wireless services (as well as services from other providers such as NetworkIP / Elite Telecom). T-Mobile works with a variety of resellers known as mobile virtual network operators (or MVNOs), as do the other large wireless providers&lt;sup id="fnref:3"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:3"&gt;3&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. Other MVNOs include providers like Cricket Wireless, Google Fi, and Mint Mobile&lt;sup id="fnref:4"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:4"&gt;4&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. As an MVNO, Phreeli's startup costs are likely in the seven figures. If the company had instead attempted to build out its own network from scratch, the costs would be at least a hundred times higher, so acting as an MVNO is a logical business decision. As a result, though, Phreeli's users are subject to T-Mobile's terms of service, as well as those of other third-party providers Phreeli works with. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;While practical from a cost perspective, Phreeli's status as an MVNO means that T-Mobile will always have access to certain kinds of information about Phreeli's users, as may the other service providers Phreeli works with. In order to connect a call or a text from or to a mobile phone, the network has to have certain information, such as the phone's number and location&lt;sup id="fnref:5"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:5"&gt;5&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;, which are logged as Phreeli's privacy policy notes&lt;sup id="fnref:6"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:6"&gt;6&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. That information, combined with users' phone numbers, is generally enough to track users&lt;sup id="fnref:7"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:7"&gt;7&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;And that's not the only information a mobile phone provides&lt;sup id="fnref:8"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:8"&gt;8&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. Using mobile apps leaks data in a number of ways and a variety of companies capitalize on connecting information from apps with information from wireless providers, for purposes ranging from advertising to political repression&lt;sup id="fnref:9"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:9"&gt;9&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. All this information is accessible to data brokers and law enforcement offers without needing even a user's name and payment details.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;There's a good chance that Phreeli's promised privacy will face regulatory threats in the near future. Industry experts have suggested that MVNOs should expect increased enforcement for Know Your Customer regulations for eSIMs, requiring companies to be able to provide more user information to law enforcement&lt;sup id="fnref:10"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:10"&gt;10&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. Some industry analysts even suggest that the launch of Phreeli and other similar services could spur new regulations requiring wireless providers implement identity verification&lt;sup id="fnref:11"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:11"&gt;11&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. However, predicting future regulatory changes in the MVNO space is  complicated by the existence of Trump Mobile, an MVNO likely operating on T-Mobile's network launched in mid-2025&lt;sup id="fnref:12"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:12"&gt;12&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;, as well as other factors which have increasingly politicized the FCC (which is responsible for regulating MVNOs) since the beginning of 2025&lt;sup id="fnref:13"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:13"&gt;13&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. It's especially difficult to predict if Phreeli's founder will be an asset in regulatory wrangling, given that Nicholas Merrill is perhaps best known for his multi-year lawsuit against the FBI and US Department of Justice related to the USA PATRIOT Act in the early 2000s.&lt;sup id="fnref:14"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:14"&gt;14&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;The data&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;So how does Phreeli plan to counteract this data collection? The company's marketing materials focus on plans to collect as little information about users as they possibly can, as well as separating account details (like names and payment details) from the information necessary to actually place calls (like phone numbers and locations). &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The company's core claim is that users need only a zip code to sign up, with no need for an address, although this claim is misleading. Phreeli only clarifies that all users must provide not a zip code but a ZIP+4 code in its terms of service&lt;sup id="fnref:15"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:15"&gt;15&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; and during the actual sign-up process. The US Post Office uses ZIP+4 codes to identify specific addresses within the larger zip code; it's functionally equivalent to providing a full address in most cases&lt;sup id="fnref:16"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:16"&gt;16&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. In practice, users can sign up without providing a name or information beyond beyond their ZIP+4 code, as long as they use cryptocurrency to pay for their service. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Phreeli also requires an address for users requesting hardware SIM cards. Users will be able get eSIMs via Tor in the future. That option may be a useful innovation for some users. However, Tor&lt;sup id="fnref:17"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:17"&gt;17&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; isn't perfectly secure any more than cryptocurrency&lt;sup id="fnref:18"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:18"&gt;18&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; is. Both can be deanonymized and Phreeli has not indicated any steps the company may take to reduce such risks. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Phreeli also points to a cryptographic protocol they've named 'Double-Blind Armadillo' to prevent account information from being associated with a specific phone number&lt;sup id="fnref:19"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:19"&gt;19&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. According to a white paper written on Phreeli's behalf by Last Authority, the protocol will eliminate the need to connect a user's account details and the information necessary to connect calls. When a user pays their monthly bill through a system running this protocol, for instance, the payment system will generate a cryptographic token marking the account current without saving any information about the user. That token is then mixed in with other tokens and batch-processed to limit de-anonymization opportunities (like checking what tokens were issued at the same time given users made payments) before the entire batch of tokens is transmitted to T-Mobile or another wireless provider. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;However, the white paper does not demonstrate a working version of this protocol, discuss what technologies are used to build it, or even say that the protocol has been implemented at all. Instead, the white paper states that, at time of launch, Double-Blind Armadillo is not in use. Initially, Phreeli is using a less secure system that the white paper describes as "an acceptable level of security and privacy" despite marketing materials suggesting otherwise&lt;sup id="fnref:20"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:20"&gt;20&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Assuming Double-Blind Armadillo is ever fully implemented, this approach will only protect a limited amount of user data. That's true even for users who pay with cryptocurrency and use eSIM cards obtained via Tor in brand new phones that are purchased anonymously and only used to call other users taking the same precautions&lt;sup id="fnref:21"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:21"&gt;21&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. Protection will be more limited for a user who uses a phone they transferred from another wireless provider, ports over their existing phone number, logs into accounts associated with their name on their phone, or plays mobile games with ads. Users without the technical skills to use Tor and cryptocurrency may also struggle with setting up a Phreeli account without leaking data somewhere along the way. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Of course, as there are so far no audits of Phreeli's implementation of any protocols or infrastructure, there's no way to know that Phreeli's systems actually provide even limited protection. Such audits can take significant time to prepare and may not be available for months.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;The key players&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Without access to more details about Phreeli's operations, potential users have to decide whether they trust the people behind the wireless startup. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Nicholas Merrill: The founder of Phreeli is the only individual named on the company's website. His resume includes founding Calyx Internet Access (an ISP) in 1995 and cofounding the Calyx Institute (a non-profit focused on digital privacy)&lt;sup id="fnref:22"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:22"&gt;22&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; in 2010, as well as filing the first constitutional challenge against gag orders under the USA PATRIOT Act in 2004. Merrill left the Calyx Institute in August 2025, as part of a series of changes that led the organization to cease offering CalyxOS&lt;sup id="fnref:23"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:23"&gt;23&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Louis Rossmann: While not listed on Phreeli's website, Rossmann posted a video announcing the launch of Phreeli and mentioning that he is a board member&lt;sup id="fnref:24"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:24"&gt;24&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. He is also listed on a 2024 SEC form detailing transfer of shares in Phreeli&lt;sup id="fnref:25"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:25"&gt;25&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; Rossmann is an advocate for consumer rights, especially the right to repair, as well as the owner of an independent computer repair business founded in 2007. He operates a popular YouTube channel on related topics and is involved with multiple non-profits&lt;sup id="fnref:26"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:26"&gt;26&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Steve Gelmis: Gelmis is also listed on Phreeli's 2024 SEC paperwork as a director, though has not publicly announced ties to Phreeli. Gelmis is founded Public Interest Network Services / Public Interest Telecom in 1984&lt;sup id="fnref:27"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:27"&gt;27&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Least Authority: The consultancy that developed Double Blind Armadillo is named in Phreeli's white paper describing the protocol. Least Authority has worked on projects around decentralized systems and security since 2011&lt;sup id="fnref:28"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:28"&gt;28&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. In 2015, the company spun off the Electric Coin Company to operate Zcash, a privacy-focused cryptocurrency&lt;sup id="fnref:29"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:29"&gt;29&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Zooko Wilcox: The founder of Least Authority&lt;sup id="fnref:30"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:30"&gt;30&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;, Wilcox has spoken to multiple publications about Phreeli and can be assumed to have worked on Double Blind Armadillo. Wilcox also worked on Zcash, including a stint as the CEO of the Electric Coin Company, and remains active in the community&lt;sup id="fnref:31"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:31"&gt;31&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Additional staff: Phreeli likely has around 10 staff members, although information is extremely limited. Two additional staff members are listed on the company's LinkedIn profile: Phil Weiss and David Moo&lt;sup id="fnref:32"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:32"&gt;32&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. Weiss lists a position as Phreeli's general counsel, along with operating his own law firm and teaching part-time. Moo lists a position as Phreeli's director of operations and appears to have worked at Calyx Internet Access with Merrill. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Funders:  A single angel investor seems to have provided most of Phreeli's $5 million in funding. When asked about the investor's identity by Wired reporter Andy Greenberg, Merrill declined to provide their name&lt;sup id="fnref:33"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:33"&gt;33&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The lack of details about most of the people involved in Phreeli's operations is concerning. It's not surprising that people who care about privacy decline to be identified publicly — but doing so limits an organization's ability to build trust. Without information on who is funding Phreeli, outside evaluators can't even guess if those funders might make demands of the company that endanger its ability to function, let alone to keep users data private&lt;sup id="fnref:34"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:34"&gt;34&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. It's a known issue in the space — even Tor routinely has to address funding the project received from the US government in order to maintain users' trust&lt;sup id="fnref:35"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:35"&gt;35&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; — which makes Phreeli's lack of transparency all the more noteworthy.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Addressing concerns around Phreeli from other security-focused projects is virtually impossible without the organization increasing its transparency. Since Phreeli's launch, makers of secure phone operating systems other than the Calyx Institute have leveled accusations at Merrill, as well as unnamed Phreeli co-founders&lt;sup id="fnref:36"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:36"&gt;36&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; and discussed warning their own users against the company. Many of these concerns are tied to Merrill's exit from the Calyx Institute, which was part of a larger chain of events that dramatically reduced users' trust in CalyxOS and other offerings from the non-profit&lt;sup id="fnref:37"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:37"&gt;37&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. Most of the details around his departure are not publicly available. When one departure can start such a damaging chain reaction, though, it's reasonable to assume that the people involved need to consider how to better work within organizational structures in the future.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Worse, what information Phreeli offers can be seen as misleading. For instance, Phreeli recommends using privacy-focused cryptocurrencies such as Zcash or Monero, going so far as to mention them in the company's privacy policy, adding that "Zcash and Monero are in no way affiliated with Phreeli--please take the time to learn about these services before using them."&lt;sup id="fnref:38"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:38"&gt;38&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;. While technically a correct statement, Least Authority's work with Phreeli makes complicates that claim, as Least Authority created and then spun off Zcash and Wilcox remains a Zcash advocate.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;Trustability&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;If you take Phreeli's claims of privacy at face value, the company's offerings seem impressive. If you dig deeper, however, you will find that Phreeli seems to be promising more than they can actually offer (at least at the time of offering). It's unclear how many of the privacy measures the company promises have actually been implemented.  Worse, the company's marketing materials frame details in ways that are at best overly-generous and at worst are misleading.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Phreeli seems to be quickly building an organizational culture that limits information, as well as downplays users' concerns, perhaps best evidenced in the company's sub-reddit. At time of writing, the sub-reddit contains 11 posts. However, multiple posts have been deleted from the sub-reddit, though comments associated with those posts are still discoverable via the accounts that posted them. The company's moderator appears to follow a policy of deleting posts requesting support from the company's sub-reddit after users have connected with support through Phreeli's website. Reviewing four such posts since Phreeli's launch suggests that multiple users have struggled with accessing eSIMs while signing up for the service&lt;sup id="fnref:39"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:39"&gt;39&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt;, information that may be useful for potential users considering signing up. This approach is not necessarily unusual for many startups as it can be seen as eliminating negative comments, as well as reducing users' ability to search for common issues and solutions. Overall, the strategy reduces both transparency and trust, which is worrying to see in an organization already lacking in both.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;More concerning is the response one poster received when asking about Phreeli's terms of service around forced arbitration and class action waiver clauses — clauses Rossmann is known for advocating against. When asked about these clauses in Phreeli's sub-reddit, Merrill replied personally, essentially saying that the company would never take advantage of these clauses: "We're a small business, just getting started - and our advisors explained to us the many ways our existence is threatened if we don't have this, so we put it in... we - just like our customers - are little guys. We don't want to void warranties, post-hoc change terms of sale on people in disadvantageous ways, or hold people in abusive contracts. We just don't want to get destroyed in the early stages of launching a new company by bad faith opportunists using lawfare to wipe us out."&lt;sup id="fnref:40"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:40"&gt;40&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; Merrill's philosophy seems to be that users should trust him and his company to do the right thing in any given situation. But as Rossmann says in his video about Phreeli, "I don't believe in 'Trust me, bro.'"&lt;sup id="fnref:41"&gt;&lt;a class="footnote-ref" href="#fn:41"&gt;41&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/sup&gt; Customers can't trust a company's leaders claiming they would never use a given clause, because those leaders may change their minds or be replaced. Merrill suggesting otherwise demonstrates either willful ignorance about the realities of running a business or a concerning lack of care about users' security in the long run.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Ultimately, Phreeli is asking users to take a lot on faith — and users should refuse. In the absence of any audit or other evidence that Phreeli has implemented any of its promised security measures, users have to assume that Phreeli is just another MVNO passing data along to its wireless provider with no protection. And when you consider the little information that is available about the organization, its technology, and its staff, there's reasons to worry that Phreeli may even be worse than the average MVNO:&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;a significant mismatch between marketing materials and terms of service demonstrates a willingness to deceive users&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;an organizational culture of avoiding transparency endangers users' ability to access the services they pay for&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;promising protection via technology that currently doesn't exist creates a false sense of security for users&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;a founder whose departure impacted one organization's ability to continue operations could do the same again and leave users stuck&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;
&lt;p&gt;At this time, potential users should pass on Phreeli, especially if privacy and security are key concerns.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;tl;dr&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Activists, organizers, and individuals facing government repression should not use Phreeli. Even if Phreeli fully implements their proposed Double Blind Armadillo protocol, the company would need to address significant concerns around transparency and trustability to be considered a useful option for individuals looking to protect their privacy.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;div class="footnote"&gt;
&lt;hr /&gt;
&lt;ol&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:1"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.phreeli.com/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:1" title="Jump back to footnote 1 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:2"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.wired.com/story/new-anonymous-phone-carrier-sign-up-with-nothing-but-a-zip-code/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:2" title="Jump back to footnote 2 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:3"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_virtual_network_operator&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:3" title="Jump back to footnote 3 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:4"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_mobile_virtual_network_operators_in_the_United_States&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:4" title="Jump back to footnote 4 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:5"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://kiledjian.com/2025/12/17/in-the-final-weeks-of.html&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:5" title="Jump back to footnote 5 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:6"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.phreeli.com/privacy/policy&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:6" title="Jump back to footnote 6 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:7"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2025/08/t-mobile-claimed-selling-location-data-without-consent-is-legal-judges-disagree/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:7" title="Jump back to footnote 7 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:8"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2022/06/how-federal-government-buys-our-cell-phone-location-data&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:8" title="Jump back to footnote 8 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:9"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.eff.org/deeplinks/2026/01/ice-going-surveillance-shopping-spree&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:9" title="Jump back to footnote 9 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:10"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://hwglaw.com/2025/02/07/client-advisory-on-the-fccs-enforcement-of-the-know-your-customer-rule-against-telnyx/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:10" title="Jump back to footnote 10 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:11"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.wirelessdealergroup.com/post/phreeli-mvno-launches-with-zip-code-only-sign-up-privacy-focused-wireless-service-and-what-it-means&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:11" title="Jump back to footnote 11 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:12"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.fierce-network.com/wireless/trump-mobiles-made-america-phone-still-mia&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:12" title="Jump back to footnote 12 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:13"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Federal_Communications_Commission#Attempted_abandonment_of_independence_by_FCC_chairman_Brendan_Carr&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:13" title="Jump back to footnote 13 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:14"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Civil_Liberties_Union_v._Ashcroft&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:14" title="Jump back to footnote 14 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:15"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.phreeli.com/terms-of-service&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:15" title="Jump back to footnote 15 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:16"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ZIP_Code#ZIP+4&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:16" title="Jump back to footnote 16 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:17"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tor_(network)#Attacks_and_limitations&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:17" title="Jump back to footnote 17 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:18"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.cnet.com/personal-finance/crypto/are-cryptocurrency-transactions-actually-anonymous/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:18" title="Jump back to footnote 18 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:19"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.phreeli.com/files/PhreeliDoubleBlindArmadilloWhitePaper.pdf&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:19" title="Jump back to footnote 19 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:20"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zLOXsFmLayw&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:20" title="Jump back to footnote 20 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:21"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.phreeli.com/privacy/policy&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:21" title="Jump back to footnote 21 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:22"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://calyxinstitute.org/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:22" title="Jump back to footnote 22 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:23"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.reddit.com/r/CalyxOS/comments/1mf74e3/a_letter_to_the_calyxos_community/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:23" title="Jump back to footnote 23 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:24"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8SnNNq6MaI&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:24" title="Jump back to footnote 24 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:25"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/2009536/000200953624000001/xslFormDX01/primary_doc.xml&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:25" title="Jump back to footnote 25 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:26"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_Rossmann&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:26" title="Jump back to footnote 26 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:27"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://pinsarchive.ejcg.net/about/management.html&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:27" title="Jump back to footnote 27 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:28"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://leastauthority.com/about-us/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:28" title="Jump back to footnote 28 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:29"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zcash&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:29" title="Jump back to footnote 29 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:30"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://leastauthority.com/about-team/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:30" title="Jump back to footnote 30 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:31"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zooko_Wilcox-O'Hearn&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:31" title="Jump back to footnote 31 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:32"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.linkedin.com/company/phreeli/people/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:32" title="Jump back to footnote 32 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:33"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.wired.com/story/new-anonymous-phone-carrier-sign-up-with-nothing-but-a-zip-code/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:33" title="Jump back to footnote 33 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:34"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://startupwired.com/2025/08/04/why-most-series-a-rounds-are-financial-traps-for-founders/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:34" title="Jump back to footnote 34 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:35"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://blog.torproject.org/category/financials/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:35" title="Jump back to footnote 35 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:36"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://piunikaweb.com/2025/12/29/grapheneos-warns-users-against-privacy-first-carrier-phreeli-recommends-silent-link-esim-instead/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:36" title="Jump back to footnote 36 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:37"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.reddit.com/r/CalyxOS/comments/1qe2410/what_are_your_plans_for_regaining_trust/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:37" title="Jump back to footnote 37 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:38"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.phreeli.com/privacy/policy&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:38" title="Jump back to footnote 38 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:39"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.reddit.com/user/Team_Phreeli/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:39" title="Jump back to footnote 39 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:40"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.reddit.com/r/Phreeli/comments/1pr4hnb/forced_arbitration_and_class_action_waiver/&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:40" title="Jump back to footnote 40 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li id="fn:41"&gt;
&lt;p&gt;https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e8SnNNq6MaI&amp;#160;&lt;a class="footnote-backref" href="#fnref:41" title="Jump back to footnote 41 in the text"&gt;&amp;#8617;&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ol&gt;
&lt;/div&gt;</description></item><item><title>The Once and Future Latke</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2025_11_01_the_once_and_future_latke.html</link><guid>3916635e-f2a0-5387-8ae7-7bdad6fbe626</guid><pubDate>Sat, 01 Nov 2025 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;We all think we know what a latke is: a traditional potato pancake fried up for Hanukkah. But where did that tradition come from? And what is the future of the latke?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This zine looks at the history of the latke and its ingredients, showing that this simple treat is a lot more complicated than you might expect.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;em&gt;Content notes: Discussions of nationalism and militarism.&lt;/em&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;iframe frameborder="0" src="https://itch.io/embed/4120779" width="552" height="167"&gt;&lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/the-once-and-future-latke"&gt;The Once and Future Latke by Thursday Bram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</description></item><item><title>Ditch work for a Yom Kippur ball</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2025_09_11_ditch_work_for_a_yom_kippur_ball.html</link><guid>8db5da7a-94b6-5775-af08-11ae73f900a3</guid><pubDate>Thu, 11 Sep 2025 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;This zine discusses how not working on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur can be a tool for solidarity with both your coworkers and coreligionists.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;iframe src="https://itch.io/embed/3877538" width="552" height="167" frameborder="0"&gt;&lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/ditch-work-for-a-yom-kippur-ball"&gt;Ditch Work for a Yom Kippur Ball by Thursday Bram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</description></item><item><title>Now Showing: Your WiFi router name</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2025_07_01_now_showing_your_wifi_router_name.html</link><guid>d327058c-77b6-5f4b-98ce-f50deaaa190c</guid><pubDate>Tue, 01 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;Ever seen a WiFi router name that made you laugh? What about one that made you angry?&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Since WiFi router names are public, they are a form of media. This zine explores common router names, goes through the laws and standards dictating those names, and uses media analysis to consider the options we have in choosing our own router names and responding to the names others have selected.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;iframe width="552" height="167" frameborder="0" src="https://itch.io/embed/3911228"&gt;&lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/now-showing-your-wifi-router-name"&gt;Now Showing: Your WiFi Router Name by Thursday Bram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</description></item><item><title>Desire built this place: Why Archive of Our Own works</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2025_07_01_desire_built_this_place_why_archive_of_our_own_works.html</link><guid>e0fccae6-b331-5379-b0f5-0e9922b56195</guid><pubDate>Tue, 01 Jul 2025 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;This zine explores human-computer interaction through the lens of Archive of Our Own. It covers how accessing fan-fiction differs from other forms of media, how platform ownership impacts design choices, and how feminist HCI impacts security.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;iframe frameborder="0" src="https://itch.io/embed/3911205" width="552" height="167"&gt;&lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/desire-built-this-place-why-archive-of-our-own-works"&gt;Desire Built This Place: Why Archive of Our Own Works by Thursday Bram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</description></item><item><title>Protest arrest / jail support form</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2025_06_01_protest_arrest_jail_support_form.html</link><guid>3bbbfb5b-edf1-58ab-9a95-2e0869c1bf6d</guid><pubDate>Sun, 01 Jun 2025 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;Headed to a protest? Make sure you’re prepared! &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Download, print, and fill out &lt;a href="/zines/jail support form.pdf"&gt;this form&lt;/a&gt;, then give it to a trusted friend or family member who won’t be at the event. In the event of arrests or other problems, they’ll be better equipped to support you — whether that means contacting a local bail fund, posting bail themselves, or supporting you until your release.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The questions in this form can feel scary, but having this information available will help you and your community keep each other safe. Having this information on hand can even be useful for other situations where you need support — like travel delays or personal emergencies.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;One way to make filling out this form less stressful is to do it as a group activity: get together with friends and talk through what support you each may need and how to make sure you get it. You can also talk about who will hold your forms and handle contacting the necessary people in the event of an arrest.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Please copy and share &lt;a href="/zines/jail support form.pdf"&gt;this form&lt;/a&gt; with anyone who needs it.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;&lt;a href="/zines/jail support form.pdf"&gt;Click here to download the form!&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;</description></item><item><title>Updated versions of zines for 2025</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2025_01_10_updated_versions_of_zines_for_2025.html</link><guid>4e839faf-5f6e-5240-8511-8662cd669725</guid><pubDate>Fri, 10 Jan 2025 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;I've updated both my mini-zine about Oregon voter registration and my mini-zine about the Oregon political contribution tax credit for 2025.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;a brief guide to Oregon voter registration&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This mini zine covers how to register to vote in Oregon, including if you don't have state-issued ID or a permanent address. It also describes how to remove your address from the public record (Oregon voters' addresses are otherwise publicly available).&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;iframe frameborder="0" src="https://itch.io/embed/4016544" width="552" height="167"&gt;&lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/oregon-voter-registration"&gt;a brief guide to Oregon voter registration by Thursday Bram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;

&lt;h2&gt;Want $50 off your taxes?&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This mini-zine walks you through claiming the Oregon political contribution tax credit, which will get you $50 off your Oregon taxes.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;iframe frameborder="0" src="https://itch.io/embed/4016740" width="552" height="167"&gt;&lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/or-political-tax-credit"&gt;Want $50 Off Your Taxes? by Thursday Bram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</description></item><item><title>tənəs buk kʰapa tsiltsil pulakʰli-tsəqw luʔluʔ-iliʔi</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2024_06_01_tns_buk_kapa_tsiltsil_pulaklitsqw_luluilii.html</link><guid>4b72f2cc-2c81-5b37-835b-f5d11c035015</guid><pubDate>Sat, 01 Jun 2024 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;nayka munk tənəs buk kʰapa tsiltsil pulakʰli-tsəqw luʔluʔ-iliʔi. nayka tiki ukuk hihi-ikta. nayka tiki munk-t̓səm kʰapa ukuk qʰiwa concernedape yaka miɬayt kʰapa bəqəlšuɬ-iliʔi pi dxʷdəwʔabš-iliʔi. yaka munk-miɬayt tipsu pi x̣ələl-ikta kʰapa nsayka iliʔi kʰapa hihi qʰex̣chi wik yaka munk-miɬayt yaʔim yakwa.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;nayka munk-t̓səm ukuk pus leyn tayi-skul buk 4. hayu masi kʰapa munk-kəmtəks-tilixam yakwa! wik mayka makuk uk tənəs buk yakwa. ɬush mayka palach kʰapa leyn tayi-skul pus mayka tiki nayka tənəs buk.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;iframe width="552" height="167" frameborder="0" src="https://itch.io/embed/3578487"&gt;&lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/chinuk-wawa-stardew-valley"&gt;tənəs buk kʰapa tsiltsil pulakʰli-tsəqw luʔluʔ-iliʔi by Thursday Bram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;

&lt;p&gt;This zine about Stardew Valley is in &lt;a href="https://www.lanecc.edu/programs-academics/academic-departments/humanities-division/language-studies-department/chinuk-wawa"&gt;Chinuk Wawa&lt;/a&gt;. I like the game and wanted to write about it because the creator, concernedape, used plants and animals from the Pacific Northwest in the game, though it isn't set here.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;I wrote the text initially for my final project in the Chinuk Wawa program at Lane Community College. Thank you to the instructors there for their help! I'm not asking for payment for this zine, but if you like it, you can &lt;a href="https://www.lanecc.edu/programs-academics/academic-departments/humanities-division/language-studies-department/chinuk-wawa/support-chinuk-wawa"&gt;donate to support the program at Lane&lt;/a&gt;.&lt;/p&gt;</description></item><item><title>an introduction to posting bail in Multnomah County</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2024_05_01_an_introduction_to_posting_bail_in_multnomah_county.html</link><guid>b47b913e-12fb-5a68-8335-69b1b7a8ef4d</guid><pubDate>Wed, 01 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;I've become very familiar with the local bail system here in Multnomah County as a part of providing support to protestors. I produced this zine to document parts of the process not covered by the instructions offered by the Multnomah County sheriff's office.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Please know that the process is subject to change, often with no warning. If you post a bail and notice that something has changed, let me know and I'll update the zine as soon as possible. &lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The zine is available to download as a PDF below, which you can then print and fold. There's also a transcript of the zine at the bottom of this page.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;code&gt;&amp;lt;iframe width="552" height="167" frameborder="0" src="https://itch.io/embed/3575744"&amp;gt;&amp;lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/bail-in-multnomah-county"&amp;gt;Posting Bail in Multnomah County by Thursday Bram&amp;lt;/a&amp;gt;&amp;lt;/iframe&amp;gt;&lt;/code&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h2&gt;zine transcript&lt;/h2&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;This guide only applies to local arrests in Multnomah County, Oregon.&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Booking and bail processes differ by county, although most Oregon counties will have similar steps. Federal processes are completely different, however.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;This guide covers providing funds to arrestees so that they can 'self-bail' rather than posting bail directly. It's the main option available — private bail bond agencies don't operate in Oregon because the state only requires arrestees to post 10% of the full bond amount for release.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;The booking process&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p&gt;When someone is arrested, they're taken to one of the Multnomah County jails for processing, usually the Multnomah County Detention Center downtown, but Inverness Jail near the airport is also an option.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Predicting how long booking will take is hard. If someone is arrested at a protest, booking often takes around 8 hours, though 12+ hours is not uncommon.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;Start at MCSO.us/paid&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p&gt;The Multnomah County Sheriff's website has information about arrestees' statuses. Start by selecting 'Booked Today' (or the correct day) under 'Search Type,' then look through the full list of names for your person. Remember, they'll be under their legal name. You're looking for your person's status. If any of their charges have a status of 'Hold', 'Released', or 'Sentenced', you won't be able to bail them.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;'Released' can either mean they were released to another agency or on their own recognizance.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;Call the MCSO bail desk&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;503-988-3689 (ask for the bail desk)&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Ask the bail desk staff to
- confirm your person is eligible for bail
- confirm the amount you need to post for bail
- check if an arraignment hearing is scheduled&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;During arraignment hearings, arrestees see the judge for a first time. Sometimes judges will decide to release arrestees without bail, so you may want to wait until after the hearing to post bail.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;Post bail through Touchpay&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Send money for 'self-release' to arrestees through Touchpay online, by telephone, or in person at their kiosks, using either a credit or debit card. You can also use cash in person. You'll need MCSO's facility code (#297204) for the process.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;&lt;strong&gt;Phone: 866-232-1899&lt;/strong&gt;
&lt;strong&gt;Website: https://www.gtlfsonlinepay.com/portal/&lt;/strong&gt;&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Warning: Touchpay is awful. The website looks sketchy, but is correct. Sending more than $2,000 at a time will cause your account to lock up, though you can send up to $10,000 in batches.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;Call the MCSO bail desk (again)&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;p&gt;Once you've confirmed Touchpay has processed your payment, call the bail desk again. Touchpay doesn't send them notifications, so you need to let them know the money is available so they can inform your person.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;p&gt;From there, the arrestee should be asked if they want to use that money towards bail. Assuming they say yes, they should be released from the jail within a few hours.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;h3&gt;Potential problems&lt;/h3&gt;
&lt;ul&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Bails over $10,000 can't be paid through Touchpay. You'll need to deliver a cashier's check in person to post larger bails.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Arrestees under the age of 18 go through a different process (usually involving being released to their guardian) and won't appear on the MCSO website.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Arrestees can refuse bail if they so choose.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Touchpay will take your money even if your person isn't eligible for bail.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;li&gt;Funds are held for the duration of any related legal proceedings (which can take years), then returned to the arrestee less fees.&lt;/li&gt;
&lt;/ul&gt;</description></item><item><title>a pocket guide to exiting time loops</title><link>https://new.thursdaybram.com/2024_05_01_a_pocket_guide_to_exiting_time_loops.html</link><guid>d7126d12-ee0c-5953-96a9-56a2572d13d7</guid><pubDate>Wed, 01 May 2024 00:00:00 +0000</pubDate><description>&lt;p&gt;Are you trapped in a time loop? This pocket guide from the Distressed Time Travelers Association will walk you through the steps necessary to exit a time loop safely. No matter whether your time loop is hte result of science of magic, this guide will improve your time loop experience.&lt;/p&gt;
&lt;iframe height="167" frameborder="0" src="https://itch.io/embed/3589442" width="552"&gt;&lt;a href="https://thursdayb.itch.io/a-pocket-guide-to-exiting-time-loops"&gt;a pocket guide to exiting time loops by Thursday Bram&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/iframe&gt;</description></item>
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