The Wake-Up Call: Tweetup, Prison Strike

Social media: the incessant buzz in the background of many of our lives that keeps us simultaneously distracted and connected. Tonight's Elk Grove Tweetup celebrates the power of that technology-forged connection, a power that's also been on display in recent prison strikes like the one currently happening in California. Here are the details.

In the Patch:

Meet your virtual pals. It’s time again. This month’s social media soiree will take place at 6:30 p.m. at the , and feature raffles and the return of the ever-popular I Love Elk Grove T-shirts. Don’t know what a Tweetup is? Read by Patch columnist Jane Gassner to find out.

Lose a pigeon? The Laguna Creek Veterinary Hospital has found one—a fancy one, no less. to claim it; ask for Dr. Van Doren.

Outside the Patch:

Hundreds of California prisoners continue hunger strike. The strike started at Pelican Bay State Prison in protest of conditions in the prison’s Security Housing Unit, where inmates spend 22 hours per day isolated in their cells. It has quickly spread to other prisons, and some prisoners are in danger of dying of starvation. Prison officials say studies show the units are humane, and want to begin force-feeding prisoners. Public radio stations KPCC in Los Angeles and KQED in San Francisco have in-depth coverage of the strike, while KCRA filmed a solidarity protest in Sacramento earlier this week.