Katie Rucke

Katie Rucke is a MintPress staff writer and investigative report specializing in the war on drugs, criminal justice, marijuana legislation, education and watchdog investigations as well as whistle-blowers. Her investigations related to the coverage of the 2010 Toyota recall scandal, and coverage of the trials of Anonymous hacker and proclaimed activist Jeremy Hammond as well as Bradley Manning have received international acclaim. Rucke has been recommended by the Wikileaks organization as a trusted journalist in 2013. Rucke has also written pieces for Yahoo! and various community magazines. Follow Katie on Twitter: @katierucke

Alyssa Milano’s “Hacktivist” Comic Book Delves Into Social Justice, Privacy And Politics

“Hacktivist” tells of government attempts to silence transparency and civil liberties advocates by abusing technology and the public’s privacy in general.

Katie Rucke
作者 Katie Rucke

Out this week is the long-anticipated print edition of the comic book “Hacktivist” by American actress Alyssa Milano, which tells the story of two people who co-founded a fictional social media networking company, and just so happen to also be part of the largest hacking group in the world. According to Comic Book Resources, “The story follows

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Dogma Days: Religion Encroaching On Human Rights

Some cite the religious fight against Obamacare as proof the rule of law may not be as all encompassing or protective of human rights as first thought.

Katie Rucke
作者 Katie Rucke
Pope Francis meets ambassadors to the Holy See, at the Vatican, Monday, Jan. 13, 2014. Pope Francis on Monday criticized abortion as evidence of a "throwaway culture" that wastes people as well as food, saying such a mentality is a threat to world peace. (AP Photo/Andrew Medichini, Pool)

Is religion affecting our ability to ensure every man, woman and child is afforded their basic human rights? It’s a question religious scholars, constitutional lawyers and human rights advocates are pondering as the U.S. government prepares to decide in the next few months whether religious beliefs are reason enough to exempt employers from

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PETA Donates Surgical Simulators, Hopes To Save Animals’ Lives

PETA purchased 64 state-of-the-art TraumaMan surgical simulators and donated them to medical training programs in nine countries.

Katie Rucke
作者 Katie Rucke

Each year in the U.S. some 20 million animals are killed for use in biology, psychology and medical training classes and experiments. Although sophisticated computer software programs are on the market, which includes lifelike human simulators, there are many places around the world where medical education professionals continue to rely on animals

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Excessive Force Case In NJ Highlights Lack Of Nationwide Police Accountability

Not only is the number of complaints investigated startlingly low, it’s estimated that 70 percent who experience some form of police brutality never file a complaint.

Katie Rucke
作者 Katie Rucke

Only 1 percent of all complaints made against New Jersey police officers for using excessive force, among other types of police brutality, were deemed legitimate and investigated by internal review teams between 2008 and 2012, according to an investigation by a local newspaper. The other 99 percent of complaints alleging brutality, bias and civil

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Does A Wider Definition Of Racial Profiling Protect Civil Liberties?

The U.S. Department of Justice is considering expanding its rules against racial profiling in order to protect more Americans from having their civil rights violated, an unnamed government official said Wednesday.

Katie Rucke
作者 Katie Rucke
police (AP Photo/Colleen Long)

The U.S. Department of Justice is considering expanding its rules against racial profiling in order to protect more Americans from having their civil rights violated, an unnamed government official said Wednesday. Encouraged by civil rights groups who say that law enforcement unfairly targeted Latinos when it came to immigration cases and

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Is Google’s Latest Acquisition Proof Privacy Is On Its Way Out?

News that Google acquired fellow Silicon Valley-based company Nest has, for a lack of better words, sent privacy advocates into a tizzy.

Katie Rucke
作者 Katie Rucke
In this Wednesday, June 27, 2012, file photo, Vic Gundotra, Google Senior Vice President of Engineering, talks about Google Plus at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Paul Sakuma, File)

Valued at $3.2 billion, Nest has a catalog of smart home products such as a Learning Thermostat, which can track the movements and activity of people in their homes. “Nest is all about home automation,” said Clayburn Griffin, search engine optimization strategist at 360i. “It offers ‘smart devices’ that control things in your home and are

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Encroaching Police State? Federal Checkpoints Increase, Push For “Voluntarily” Tests

“The police are there to make sure the ‘volunteer requests’ are backed up by the implied threat of force.”

Katie Rucke
作者 Katie Rucke

In order to curb the number of people driving under the influence of alcohol and drugs, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says it established federal roadside checkpoints about 40 years ago to survey and collect DNA from drivers. Each year some 10,000 people die in a drunk driving-related traffic accident, according to estimates

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