Item: Gender harassment down the toilet at WSU-Vamcouver: Students hope to curb any hostilities on campus through Gender-Neutral Bathroom Week/Jacques von Lunen, Columbian

More Info: Teal and Williams finally started a campaign using a small $600 grant from the campus diversity council. They showed a series of documentaries on gender issues. They built a website. And they initiated the campus’s first gender-neutral restroom week. The campus has a few single-stall unisex restrooms already. Many college campuses have designated such facilities in recent years in response to hate crimes committed against transgender students in restrooms. But the existing gender-neutral restrooms at WSUV are few and far between on the sprawling campus, Teal said.

Question: Is Gender-Neutral Bathroom Week a good idea? Or a bad idea?

Except for the buzz cut, Gilberto Gonzalez seems like a typical wholesome 19-year-old: Enthusiastic, helpful, a bit shy. But when he’s asked to stand in front of the fire truck for a photo, it all changes. He raises his chin, squares his shoulders. His eyes narrow and grow fierce with pride. Gilberto is a trainee at the Benton City, Wash., fire station. He lives across the street in a house he shares with five other Benton County Fire District 2 volunteer residents. He’s also a lance corporal in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserves and trains at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Tacoma. “I was helping my nation with the Marine Corps Reserves but I wanted to help my community too,” Gilberto said. “What better than working here as a firefighter?”  When he’s not protecting his country and community, Gilberto is preparing to fight crime. He’s earning an online criminal justice degree from Washington State University so he can become a fire marshal/Richard Miller, WSU News Center. More here.

Question: What were your goals when you were 19?

WSU Creamery worker and cheese supervisor Johnny Parkins stirs 1,500 pounds of Cougar Gold cheese on the finishing table last week.

The packages in a Washington State University warehouse are addressed to distant cities in Texas, Florida, Pennsylvania and Missouri. They’re consumer testimonials to the far-flung appeal of Cougar Gold.

The WSU Creamery will ship about 50,000 boxes of the crumbly, white cheddar – which comes in an iconic gold-striped can – and other Cougar-brand cheeses this holiday season. Becky Kramer, SR

I'm a big fan of Cougar Gold. Have you tried it?

Universities around Washington are buying up websites under the new .xxx web extension created for pornographic material. But they aren’t trying to bolster their budgets by getting into the porn business; they are protecting their brands from entrepreneurs of the adult entertainment industry who may otherwise use the schools’ names to drive web traffic. “This isn’t our business,” said Chris Gill, GU’s chief information officer. “It’s an ongoing challenge.” GU paid $200 to register www.gonzagauniversity.xxx, and may purchase more in the future/Chelsea Bannach, SR. More here. (.xxx logo courtesy of Wikipedia)

Question: Better safe than sorry?

Ryan Leaf has set a lot of records for Washington State University. Even though the Cougars barely lost at the '97 Rose Bowl, Leaf's success as quarterback prompted him to leave WSU and become a first-round draft pick in the NFL. He bombed, was booed and benched. “For that reason, I stayed away from WSU and Cougar nation for a long time — for all the wrong reasons,” he said. “What I should have done was run back to the family that always supported me. And I pushed them away, because I was embarrassed.” Leaf will be the first to tell you he did not know how to focus his intensity or handle his failure to win. “But for sure, it was an embarrassing moment in my life at 21 years old,” he said. “But I think a lot of people do embarrassing things when they're 21 years old. And if that's my truly embarrassing moment at 21, I'll take that one over some of the other stories I've heard/Kathy Goertzen, KATU. More here.

Question: Did you do something incredibly stupid at age 21 that you would be willing to mention?

PULLMAN – Faced with a $40 million budget cut in the biennium that ends with the 2013 fiscal year, Washington State University president Elson Floyd is looking for help wherever he can find it. And he will get some from his athletic department.

When the Pac-12’s expanded media deal kicks in next school year, the department will assume academic service costs previously covered by the administration. “It’s in an excess of a half-million dollars,” athletic director Bill Moos said. Vince Grippi, SR  More here.

Do you think more university athletic departments should do this?

From the Microsoft Fan Club to the Breakdancing Club to the Humans vs. Zombies Club, students at Washington State University have a broad choice of extracurricular activities. One of the more controversial clubs is WSU's chapter of Youth for Western Civilization, a national group headquartered in Arlington, Va. YWC member Phil Tignino, a senior political science major, said he and other members have been called racists and bigots. The Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil rights firm, he calls “a shake-down racket that just likes to scold people who are right of communist,” said YWC is a hate group. According to an online description, the club's purpose is to preserve and advance western civilization and culture while exposing and combating the destructive elements that are trying to bring the West down, including liberalism and neo-conservativism/Kelsey Husky, Moscow-Pullman Daily News. More here.

Question: Is a campus organization, like Youth for Western Civilization, automatically racist, if it advocates for western civilization and culture?

Item: Hackers deliver message to WSU: Guy Fawkes-inspired video played in many classrooms ensures Nov.5 will be remembered/Kelsey Husky, Moscow-Pullman Daily News

More Info: Some Washington State University students are certain to “Remember, Remember, the Fifth of November.” Multimedia-capable classrooms in Sloan and Todd halls were hacked Friday in such a way that video screens dropped and a 3:43-minute YouTube video played a speech reminiscent of the 2006 movie, “V for Vendetta,” which is about a modern-day Guy Fawkes-style plot.

Question: Are you amused by what the hackers did here? Bothered by it? Or a little of both? Has your computer ever been hacked?

At Washington State, the Center for Distance and Professional Education has built a virtual campus, which includes stylish Cougar ware for avatars who want to upgrade their wardrobe.

Azure Moonlight’s corset is chafing, and her boots pinch her size-2 feet. She’s had a hard day of flying, shopping and dancing in the virtual world of Second Life. Fortunately, she can teleport over to J. Coug for the latest in Washington State University loungewear. “Avatars may want to get comfortable and show their Coug spirit when they visit WSU’s Second Life campus,” said Brian Maki, media production manager for WSU’s Center for Distance and Professional Education, which built the virtual campus. “So we created some typical WSU attire, like, well, sweatpants.” More here.

Question: Do you have an online avatar and hang out in virtual world — or do you consider real life hard enough to handle?

Howard Martinson: Seems like my beloved Cougs are irrelevant in NCAA football these days. Other than the fact that everyone can mark up their Coug game as a win. Maybe CdA HS or LC HS could beat up on the Cougs these days. No, I don’t get tired of the Coug jokes. I change the names and make it all about the UW dirtyfilthystinkingdogs. When, pray tell, can we get Robb Akey back in Pullman where he belongs? Or maybe Mike Price.

Question: Do you think successful Idaho Vandal football coach Robb Akey will return to coach WSU someday?

A five-year-old Cougar cheerleader in training: http://wsu-online.blogspot.com/#0

Do you know the words to your alma mater’s fight song? I thought ours was “We are the Champions.” Maybe Queen stole it?

Gonzaga’s Matt Bouldin, left, dances up the sideline trying to stay inbounds after stealing the ball from Santa Clara’s Michael Santos Thursday at Gonzaga. Bouldin stepped out of bounds a moment later, turning it back over.  ESPN game story & boxscore. Jesse Tinsley/SR

• New Mexico State 74, Idaho 71
• WSU 61, Oregon State 57 (OT)
  
• Nevada 77, Boise State 63