It’s been 4 months since The Wire season finale aired and television hasn’t been as good since. That might change though, now that HBO is airing Generation Kill, a mini-series about the first wave of Marines that engaged in combat in the Iraq war. The mini-series was created by non other than David Simon, the amazing creator of The Wire.

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Social Action and Cinema YouTube Videos of the Day: (for Memorial Day!)

1) Memorial Day Weekend 2007 : Iraq Veterans Against the War launched Operation First Casualty

For the Cinema YouTube Video of the Day, Click here >>>

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The TakePart Top 10 Weekly Roundup is a compilation of the week’s most notable stories from our entertainment-meets-social-action blogging network. Several topics really stood out this week, including the Oscars as social advocacy inspiration, civil rights and Black History Month, and lots of hot news on entertainment going Green. Check out our most popular posts of the week on these subjects, as well as a few TakePart blogger favorites.

Katie:

Happy Belated “Freedom to Marry” Week!

Rosa and Raymond Parks: Valiant Valentine #5

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Nicole:

Top 10 Oscar Picks to Inspire Social Action

Cornel West: Black Thoughts On Black History Month

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Giulia:

H&M’s “Fashion Against AIDS”

Ed Begley Jr. Goes Green

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Gina:

Top 10 Best Picture Winners That Inspire

Remixing “Chicago 10″

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Kerry:

How To Set the World On Fire Without Burning Out

Eco-Brokers Cater to Green Homebuyers

This year Oscar turns 80 and with big show less than 5 days away I thought it might be nice to reflect on years past. Thus, I present to you the Top 10 Oscar Best Picture Winners That Inspire. Each title is listed along with the year it won.

Did I miss your favorite? Leave a comment with your pick for the most inspiring Best Picture winner and I’ll post the best comments next week on the Takepart Blog

1. Gandhi 1982 (directed by Richard Attenborough) - It makes sense that a biopic of one of the world’s most inspiring people would also be inspirational itself. Ben Kingsley gives an outstanding performance as Mahatma Gandhi, the lawyer turned activist and leader that confronted the British and urged for non-violent protest. In a way, I think it all comes down to this quote:

Gandhi: “Whenever I despair, I remember that the way of truth and love has always won. There may be tyrants and murderers, and for a time, they may seem invincible, but in the end, they always fail. Think of it: always.”

and learn more about the teachings of Gandhi.

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A small victory for those of us that wonder why people like Paris Hilton get more coverage in the news than the Iraq war. It seems her great-grandfather and Hilton family patriarch won’t be leaving her (or Nicky) very much of his fortune - in fact he plans to donate 97 % of his worth at his time of death (it is at 2.3 billion as of right now) to the Conrad N. Hilton Foundation - the charity organization named after his father.And now, because I also decided to kind of report on Hilton - here is a video of a young man who is part of Iraq Veterans Against the War, speaking about his experiences there:

learn more about Iraq Veterans Against the War by clicking on over here