The Thirsty Hippo in downtown Hattiesburg brings fun to an overlooked weekday: Wednesday. Generally, this day is nothing more than a reminder that you are not yet through the week. However, the Hippo’s Wednesday Open Mic Night is changing that.

Green is a very popular color these days, and USM has been taking action to make its green imprint on the world.

If you’re reading this article in class or while eating in the Fresh Food Company, take a look around you. You may notice a pattern in your peers.

Tuesday night, President Obama addressed the nation to announce the end of the United States’ combat mission in Iraq. The address was broadcast live from the Oval Office — the same desk where President Bush announced the beginning of Operation Iraqi Freedom more than seven years ago. In the address, Obama maintained a somber yet hopeful demeanor.

As details of Monday’s announcement sink in, faculty and students are disappointed to learn how professors and programs have been affected.

USM released its budget reduction announcement Monday morning, listing the many academic programs facing deletion or consolidation. Among 27 programs listed was the Bachelors of Arts for religion, which, pending approval, will remove the religion major and minor from the university.

As students and faculty learn about the cuts that have been made for Fiscal Year 2012, many question the effectiveness of the University Priorities Council, which was designed to evaluate university programs for areas that can be cut.

Saturday the Hattiesburg American runs a paper talking how the Religion department got a horrible blow. Today, I read again all about the Religion department and once again on the front page. Not that I am unsympathetic to the program, but it was not the only department to get cut. Yes, there were other programs, but had you noticed in the email sent by President Saunders you would have notice another department. The Technology Education Department in McLemore was a causality too.

The administration has announced the plan to cut the university’s budget by almost $15 million for the next fiscal year, meaning the University Priorities Council has temporarily finished its work.

Amnesty is an act of forgiveness for a past transgression. It is also the namesake of global human rights organization Amnesty International (AI), which has fought to end abuses of human rights and demanded justice for its victims for nearly 50 years.