Critics of President Obama's health care reform say his plan would create so-called "death panels" to decide which Americans live or die. Supporters say the legislation merely ensures that Medicare will cover consultations with a doctor about end-of-life-issues. We speak with Dr. Laurel Coleman, a geriatrician and palliative care specialist, about helping patients make tough end-of-life decisions. Amity Shlaes, a senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations, talks to us about the hypocrisy of both the Democrats and Republicans when it comes to talking about health care.

We get a debrief on yesterday's presidential town hall meeting from both sides of the health care debate: Judy Ullman, a New Hampshire teacher who attended the event and Corey Lewandowski, an organizer of the anti-Obama protest outside.

Listen to both their interviews from yesterday's show: Making Change or Making Noise: Obama's Health Care Town Hall and Obama Turns to Town Halls for Health Care Reform

Whereas most people think running is good exercise that aggravates knees and causes long-term damage, a new report reveals that it just might be good for your joints. Last spring, a European study revealed that people who run were actually protected from knee injuries. New York Times Magazine columnist Gretchen Reynolds explains.

Michael Vick is out of jail but, he’s also out of work. At least for the time being. After filing for bankruptcy and spending the last two years in prison for operating an unlawful interstate dog fighting ring, the question for future employers is: Has he repaid his debts to society? Takeaway sports correspondent Ibrahim Abdul-Matin tells us about the embattled QB's future prospects.

Ibrahim also discusses the comic strip "Tank McNamara" that caused a controversy when the Washington Post pulled it for a week. In the controversial strip (click here to see), the title character asks former Vice President Dick Cheney for advice on what to do about Michael Vick and the Vice President says, "Kill him." The comic's writer, Jeff Millar spoke to us yesterday to say that he wasn't even talking about Vick:

“Some people have interpreted that as, this is a white man saying ‘kill Michael Vick,' a specific black person. But, this is about a ready solution that people who misuse power keep always at hand to satisfy difficult situations especially when they believe they own the law. Mr. Cheney seems destined, three or four years down the road. He might be on trial himself.”

For more, read the New York Times' coverage of the story, Comic Strips on N.F.L. and Race: Fair Game or Out of Bounds?.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton continues her eleven-day tour of the African continent. After introducing a monetary commitment to Congo to help prevent sexual violence, the next country on her agenda is Nigeria. The oil rich nation is plagued by violence and corruption and President Obama skipped the nation on his last trip to Africa. Secretary Clinton is expected to have strong words for the country and to continue the push for a 60-day amnesty period on violence in the Niger Delta, which was declared in hopes to end years of militant attacks that have hobbled the oil industry there. BBC Correspondent Caroline Duffield is covering the Secretary of State's travels in Africa.

The House Judiciary Committee has released almost 6,000 pages of documents that show that Karl Rove the former top political adviser to President George W. Bush played a critical role in the 2006 firings of a number of U.S. attorneys. Do the new documents support a charge of perjury? We talk to New York Times reporter Eric Lichtblau.

California wines have become as popular and sophisticated as French wines. Now it seems American cheese makers are aiming for the same success and stature. On this morning’s menu The Takeaway talks cheese, specifically the varietals made in the USA. We are joined by food contributor Kathy Gunst and Liz Thorpe. Liz is the vice president of Murray's Cheese in New York and author of the new book, The Cheese Chronicles: A Journey Through the Making and Selling of Cheese in America, From Field to Farm to Table.

The U.S. religious left is wading into the health care debate and teaming up with President Obama to help promote his plan that would provide health insurance to roughly 46 million Americans. We speak to two leaders of the religious left, Rev. Jennifer Butler of Faith in Public Life and Rabbi David Saperstein of the Religious Action Center for Reform Judaism about their thoughts on service, faith, and the public option.

Faithful America is a coalition of faith-based organizations working with President Obama to reform health care. They are sponsoring a call-in program with the president on August 19th. For more information, head to Faithful America.org. Here is the ad they have just released to support their cause:

The folks at the Royal Opera House in London are trying to bring opera to the masses. And they are using very tech savvy means: they're letting any and everybody in the Twitter-sphere compose a collaborative masterpiece. The premise is simple: You tweet it, they sing it. For more about the ambitious project, we talk to Alison Duthie, the head of the Royal Opera House, about the world's first operatic tweet.

 Listen to John and Celeste perform their own "Twitter Opera" based on Ashton Kutcher's tweets below:

A string of bombings in northern Iraq and Baghdad has killed over 100 people in the last several days. The attacks are raising fears that extremists are engaged in a sustained attempt to spark ethnic and sectarian warfare. Rod Nordland, New York Times foreign correspondent in Baghdad, reports in today's paper that Shiites are actively organizing to resist being drawn into the violence.

For more, read Rod Nordland's article, Shiites in Iraq Show Restraint as Sunnis Keep Attacking, in the New York Times.

This afternoon, President Barack Obama will present 16 people with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. It is the highest honor that can be awarded to a civilian. Among this year's honorees are Archbishop Desmond Tutu, Stephen Hawking, U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy, tennis legend Billie Jean King, and retired U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Also receiving a medal tonight is Ambassador Nancy Goodman Brinker, founder of Susan G. Komen for the Cure, the largest breast cancer awareness organization in the world. She has just been appointed as the first "Cancer Ambassador" to the World Health Organization and she tells about her work and the award.

Want to watch the awards ceremony? The ceremony with President Barack Obama will begin at 2 p.m. central time and be carried on a live stream at whitehouse.gov.

For a full list of recipients of the 2009 Presidential Medal of Freedom, click through.

The Cash for Clunkers program heats up and people across America are trading in their gas guzzlers for new fuel efficient models. Adding fuel to the fire, General Motors announced yesterday that their electric car, the Chevy Volt, will get 230 miles per gallon during city driving. The car is expected to cost $40,000 and be on the market in November of next year. GM is calling it a "game changer," but is it too late for GM's game? Or could the Volt save GM and save the planet at the same time? We talk to Garry Golden, futurist and energy blogger, about fuel efficiency and the future of cars.

Here's how Chevy is selling its Volt: