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Meet Operation Freedoms Sentinel, the Pentagons new mission in Afghanistan

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After more than 13 years in Afghanistan, U.S. commanders and their NATO allies lowered the organizations flag in Kabul on Sunday, formally ending Operation Enduring Freedom and introducing a new mission Resolute Support in the country.

But theres another related mission also now underway: Operation Freedoms Sentinel. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said in a statement Sunday that will include two core components: working with allies and partners on Resolute Support, and continuing counterterrorism operations against the remnants of Al-Qaeda to ensure that Afghanistan is never again used to stage attacks against our homeland.

After 13 years, its a significant change for the military. OEF, as Operation Enduring Freedom is commonly known among rank-and-file troops, includes not only operations in Afghanistan, but efforts to target militants and train friendly militaries as part of OEF-Philippines and OEF-Trans Sahara. Like Operation Iraqi Freedom, the OEF acronym became a part of the troops lexicon and was incorporated in everything from awards to bumper stickers.

The Philippines mission has been slowly winding down. U.S. officials said in June that it was disbanding a Special Operations task force based there to train Philippine police and military forces as they face Abu Sayyaf extremists. Adm. Samuel Locklear, the outgoing chief of U.S. Pacific Command, said last April that the mission wouldnt go away completely, but shift in part to focus on training a Philippine police force to protect its southern islands, where insurgents are active.

The Trans Sahara mission, meanwhile, ultimately took on the name Juniper Shield as it was broadened to include more countries across northern Africa, according to a 2012 report for the Congressional Research Service. The Web site GlobalSecurity.org noted that both OEF-TS and Juniper Shield were in use by the military earlier this year.

The Freedoms Sentinel moniker was greeted with a mixed reaction Sunday. Some wondered whether it was cool enough, while others raised the question whether it sounded a little too much like something out of a comic book. It comes as the Afghan government struggles with a series of high-profile attacks and brutally high casualty numbers among its police and army units.

Hagel said that through enduring security cooperation the United States will continue to assist the Afghan government to build its capacity and self-sufficiency.

We will continue to work with our Afghan partners to secure the great progress we have made since 2001 and to seize this defining moment of opportunity for Afghanistans future, he added.

Dan Lamothe covers national security for The Washington Post and anchors its military blog, Checkpoint.

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Meet Operation Freedoms Sentinel, the Pentagons new mission in Afghanistan

Freedom's Southern: Feds shouldn't get assets during court proceedings

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An attorney for Gary L. Southern, the former president of Freedom Industries, asked a federal judge Monday to immediately stay forfeiture proceedings against Southern, arguing federal prosecutors are trying to strip him of all assets accumulated throughout his working life.

The allegations in the indictment against Southern dont show that his home in Florida or his Bentley were derived from the financial crimes he is accused of -- or that those assets relate in any way to Freedom Industries, Southerns attorney, Bob Allen, wrote in the motion.

Earlier this month, federal prosecutors charged Freedom Industries and six of its owners, managers and employees with criminal violations of the Clean Water Act related to the January 2014 chemical leak that contaminated the drinking water of 300,000 people in Charleston and surrounding communities.

Southern, Dennis P. Farrell, William E. Tis and Charles E. Herzing were each charged with three counts of violating federal environmental laws. Each man is charged with failing to meet a reasonable standard of care in running the company.

Also, U.S. Attorney Booth Goodwin charged Freedom Industries, the bankrupt company, with the same three counts of criminal water pollution violations. The company was charged through a document called an information, rather than an indictment, a move that usually indicates the defendant has reached a plea deal with prosecutors.

Also charged by information were former Freedom employees, plant manager Michael E. Burdette and Robert J. Reynolds, an environmental compliance officer. Both men were charged with one-count of violating the Clean Water Act.

In January, Freedoms tank farm along the Elk River, the Etowah River Terminal, leaked about 10,000 gallons of coal-cleaning chemicals into the river. The primary leaked chemical was 4-methylcyclohexanemethanol, or MCHM.

Southern has also been charged with profiting from the sale of goods to Freedom by companies that Southern owned or in which he had a substantial interest. In addition to the environmental charges, Southern faces six counts of bankruptcy fraud, one count of wire fraud and three counts of making false oaths or attempting to conceal his assets, all related to statements he made after the leak.

The bankruptcy-related charges allege that Southern lied about his role with Freedom, claiming he was only a consultant to the company, not an executive, in an attempt to shield his personal wealth from lawsuits related to the leak. The U.S. Attorneys Office has sought warrants to seize more than $7 million from accounts belonging to Southern or a company he owns, saying they are profits from the crimes they allege.

Goodwin said after Southern was indicted Dec. 17 that federal officials are seizing Southerns assets and that they will be held through the court proceedings. Allen wrote Monday that Southerns Bentley has already been seized.

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Freedom's Southern: Feds shouldn't get assets during court proceedings

Freedom Resort Club Selects Perspective Group For Brand Marketing

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Orlando,Florida (PRWEB) December 29, 2014

Freedom Resort Club (FRC), a new Internet-based multi-destination vacation club that offers low-cost memberships direct to consumers through an innovative online sales process, has selected Perspective Group to assist with a number of brand marketing initiatives.

With the primary aim of driving prospective new vacation club members to an online video presentation, Perspective Groups brand marketing division, commonly known as INTUITION, will utilize its Facebook Ad Management service to generate highly targeted viewers, while at the same time, growing FRCs Facebook community through engaging content.

The custom-built INTUITION brand monitoring platform will track online mentions about FRC to identify customer opinion, social engagement levels and overall increases in brand visibility as the club grows.

A PR campaign has also been launched to drive awareness of the vacation clubs benefits among consumers. Another campaign targets businesses operating in the vacation ownership industry that may be interested in partnering with Freedom Resort Club. Perspective Groups vast experience and reputation in the vacation ownership industry made them an easy choice over other agencies, says Robert Simpson, president, Freedom Resort Club. Through initial campaign results, we can already see the value of working with this team.

Freedom Resort Clubs online sales presentation approach will vastly reduce overall marketing costs compared to a traditional vacation club sales model, enabling them to offer people who love to travel all the benefits of a luxury vacation club at a fraction of the cost while also reaching a larger audience quicker than the traditional method of inviting guests to a resort for a sales presentation.

Prospective members have the opportunity to view an online presentation in the form of an easy-to-understand video that explains the benefits of the membership at a time and location that is convenient to them, without the pressure of a sales person. At the end of the video, viewers who want to join can choose from three well-priced membership options. They will become part of an exciting vacation club boasting a network of more than 3,500 luxury resorts and members-only accommodation discounts of up to 78% off retail prices.

We are delighted to be working with Freedom Resort Club, says Paul Mattimoe, president and CEO, Perspective Group. Our company has always envisioned online sales of vacation club products as a viable new marketing direction as long as the product offering and pricing mix is compelling, and so we are excited to be part of this innovative approach.

INTUITION Brand Marketing, a division of Perspective Group, offers the most comprehensive independent marketing and customer engagement solutions currently available for the vacation ownership industry globally, yet also offers each of its core segments on an a la carte basis enabling clients to adopt only those services they need, and have the INTUITION team collaborate with other services or departments they currently have.

From custom content creation and PR syndication, to customer engagement strategies and social media marketing, INTUITION has a solution. Its social media monitoring platform assists with online reputation management, original content enhances brand visibility, and services such as Social Media Advertising Management drives carefully targeted audiences to websites and promotional offers. For more information about how INTUITION can help your marketing efforts visit http://www.intuitionbyperspective.com

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Freedom Resort Club Selects Perspective Group For Brand Marketing

Long Beach Register stops publishing

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The Long Beach Register is closing, the latest in a series of cutbacks by Orange County Register parent company Freedom Communications.

Freedom launched the Long Beach Register in August 2013 and the Los Angeles Register in April amid heavy marketing campaigns for the daily newspapers. But the experiment did not last long.

Freedom closed the Los Angeles Register in September, a few months after it had reduced publication of the Long Beach Register to Sundays only. On Sunday, Freedom spokesman Eric Morgan confirmed the company was ditching the Long Beach Register altogether.

As of Dec. 28, the Long Beach Register is no longer publishing as a stand-alone section within the Sunday edition of the Orange County Register, Morgan said. We remain committed to serving Long Beach, and will continue covering the city's major news developments in the Register and ocregister.com.

Subscribers in Long Beach and surrounding cities will continue to receive the Orange County Register at their homes. The Orange County paper will also be available in single-copy machines and newsstands in the Long Beach area, the company said.

Orange County Register Publisher Rich Mirman said the closure of the Long Beach edition is part of a larger strategy to focus on serving subscribers and advertisers of the Orange County Register and the Press-Enterprise [in Riverside].

This was a rough year for Freedom.

The company closed the Long Beach and Los Angeles newspapers and imposed steep staff reductions at the Orange County Register and the Press-Enterprise.

In October, The Times sued the Orange County Register, saying it had failed to pay $2.5 million it owed The Times for delivering its papers. The Orange County Register hired a new delivery service, but subscribers said they went days without receiving their papers.

In November, the Orange County Register offered to pay reporters and other employees to start delivering papers themselves.

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Long Beach Register stops publishing

Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core – The Price of Freedom (432 Hz) – Video

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Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core - The Price of Freedom (432 Hz)
This is music from Final Fantasy VII (Crisis Core) named "The Price of Freedom" converted from 440 Hz to 432 Hz. Original music composed Takeharu Ishimoto. I am not compose it! *****No Copyright...

By: Isira Eternica

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Final Fantasy VII: Crisis Core - The Price of Freedom (432 Hz) - Video

Fleeing To Dismal Swamp, Slaves And Outcasts Found Freedom

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Great Dismal Swamp, in Virginia and North Carolina, was once thought to be haunted. For generations of escaped slaves, says archaeologist Dan Sayers, the swamp was a haven.

Most Americans know about the Underground Railroad, the route that allowed Southern slaves to escape North. Some slaves found freedom by hiding closer to home, however in Great Dismal Swamp.

The swamp is a vast wetland in southeastern Virginia and northeastern North Carolina. In George Washington's time, it was a million acres of trees, dark water, bears, bobcats, snakes and stinging insects. British settlers, who first arrived in 1607, believed the swamp was haunted.

By 1620, some of their slaves may have overcome that fear to find freedom there.

Hidden Islands Of Resistance Communities

Daniel Sayers has been working for more than a decade in Great Dismal Swamp; here, in 2011, he displays a fire-cracked rock from a dig site. His new book pieces together the stories of those who once lived in settlements scattered on patches of dry land in the swamp. Steve Helber/AP hide caption

Daniel Sayers has been working for more than a decade in Great Dismal Swamp; here, in 2011, he displays a fire-cracked rock from a dig site. His new book pieces together the stories of those who once lived in settlements scattered on patches of dry land in the swamp.

Today, 112,000 acres of swamp remain, and archaeologist Daniel Sayers has explored many of them. He's found large islands where escaped slaves settled.

"When you're walking through a thousand feet of the briars and the water, the mosquitoes are eating you alive, sweating bullets, and you're almost exhausted, and then suddenly your foot's no longer squishing in the peat but now it's walking on dry ground and crunchy leaves it blows your mind," Sayers says. "You can't imagine people not living there."

He's now written about life on these islands in a new book, A Desolate Place for a Defiant People. He believes 10 generations of escaped slaves lived here, along with Native Americans who'd been driven off their land and whites who were shunned by mainstream society.

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Fleeing To Dismal Swamp, Slaves And Outcasts Found Freedom

Salisbury, Freedom to meet for tournament title

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and finals are tomorrow at Beca...>>> Many area schools are also hosting holiday hoops tournaments this weekend. Just down the road, the Salisbury girls have put together a field with plenty of local teams..the host Falcons, squaring off with Oley Valley out of Berks County in the first round...The Lynx, a good small school but struggled today...- Salisbury shot out of the gate in this one...here they are running the floor...Jenna Keet to Kelly Gonoude (Ga-noude) at the other end...good ball movement from the Falcons...- That would continue...Gonoude with the nice look to Meagan Eripret on the low block...2 of her game-high 23 points...completes a game-opening 8-0 run for the Falcons...- They kept on rolling...Gonoude with the jump pass from beyond half court...connects with Lindsay Bauer, who finishes...she had 11 points....Salisbury led by 16 after a quarter...they roll into the final, 53 to 33...they are 8-0...>>> The early game featured Freedom and Hatboro-Horsham...we start in the 3rd quarter...- Freedom trying to build on a two-point lead...Taylor Garza kicks out to Mackenzie Herman...she hits the wing 3...Patriots up 24-19...- Later in the 3rd, Freedom's Giselle Sanchez with the rebound...goes full throttle from end to end, splits the d, and gets the lay- in...Patriots lead by 7, 28-21...- Final seconds of the 3rd...Freedom's Hailey Silfies drives baseline...bucket and the foul...3 of her game-high 15 points......Freedom wins 39-32...Patriots will

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Salisbury, Freedom to meet for tournament title

Freedom, Salisbury girls winners in first day of Salisbury Basketball Holiday Classic

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Freedom's girls basketball coach Ron Garza noticed his team was making a habit out of starting games slow this season and made a point to mention that on the trip to Salisbury to play Hatboro-Horsham Saturday afternoon.

Garza hoped that by voicing his concerns about how the Patriots have been beginning games he would see a better start, although, it didn't work out that way.

Freedom struggled offensively early, needing 3:30 to score its first points, but still managed to earn a 39-32 victory over the Hatters thanks to a hot start to the second half by Hailey Silfies in game one of the Salisbury Girls Basketball Holiday Classic.

The local team in the second game, the host Falcons, didn't experience any of the troubles Freedom had getting started, jumping out to an 18-2 lead and going on to top Oley Valley 53-33.

Salisbury and Freedom will meet 3 p.m. Monday in the championship game with Oley Valley and Hatboro-Horsham facing off at 1 p.m. in the consolation game.

The Patriots (5-3, 3-2) began to find some offensive flow at the end of the first quarter scoring two buckets with less than a minute left a shot by Kyra Jefferson and a three from Mackenzie Herman as time expired giving them their first lead of the day.

That advantage evaporated quickly as Hatboro-Horsham's Hannah Mallon opened the second quarter with a three-pointer.

Freedom trailed but not by more than three for much of the second quarter before taking the lead for good early in the third.

"[At the half] we told them that we probably played our worst half of the year and it was 16-15 so we're still alive," said Garza. "So we said we come out here, we have 16 minutes, see what happens and we were lucky."

The Patriots may have received a little luck to be able to live to tell about their rough start, but they also got a lot of help from Silfies.

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Freedom, Salisbury girls winners in first day of Salisbury Basketball Holiday Classic


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