WYPR: Midday with Dan Rodricks Podcast

An hour on fine food and wine with acclaimed chef Cindy Wolf and restaurateur and wine expert Tony Foreman.

A weekly look at the most interesting stories of the region with the reporters and editors who covered them.

History for the most part has depicted Wyatt Earp, the hero of the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in Tombstone, Arizona as a legendary lawman, a beacon of justice in the American West. But in, “Wyatt Earp: A Vigilante Life,” author Andrew C. Isenberg paints a much more complex portrait of Earp, who seemed to alternate between wearing a badge and impulsive law-breaking – as a thief, brothel bouncer, gambler and con man.

Rep. C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger (D-Maryland), ranking member of the House Select Committee on Intelligence, gives his take on the crisis in Egypt, the rising terrorist threats in Yemen and Syria, and Edward Snowden and the NSA.

Baltimore Sun critic David Zurawik is back with his take on the launch of Al Jazeera America, Maryland-based Sinclair Broadcasting’s plans for expansion; Idris Elbe’sas “Luther,” the crime-solving genius, on BBC America; and the growing number of athletes exiting Twitter in the wake of the recent experiences of the Orioles’ Adam Jones.

Governor O’Malley’s climate change plan released last month sets a goal of reducing carbon emissions in the state 25 percent by 2020. It is considered among the most aggressive in the nation. Is it a plausible plan or window dressing for O’Malley’s presidential ambitions? How will the state implement the plan? How will it affect consumers and businesses? Our guests: David Costello, deputy secretary for the Maryland Department of the Environment; Tommy Landers, policy director for the Maryland, DC Chesapeake Climate Action Network; and Kim Burns, president of Maryland Businesses for Responsive Government.

Nick Cienski, an extreme mountaineer and the senior director of innovation at Under Armour, is on a mission to climb the world’s 14 tallest mountains. He’ll be with us to talk about his climbing adventures -- including an ascent of Mt. Everest -- and the charity he founded, the non-profit Mission 14.

Will Attorney General Eric Holder’s announced change in federal sentencing policy for low-level drug offenders lead to a shift in policy toward marijuana growers and dealers? While a majority of Americans think marijuana should be legal and more medical professionals -- CNN’s Sanjay Gupta the most recent -- tout the positive properties of the herb, federal authorities still classify it a dangerous drug. We catch up on these issues with Doug Fine, author of Too High To Fail: Cannabis and the New Green Economic Revolution.

Americans take for granted that usable water is everywhere. But award-winning journalist Charles Fishman asserts that if we don’t use it smartly, sometime in the future we could be at risk of running out. Fishman explores our complex relationship with one of the earth’s most vital resources in The Big Thirst: The Secret Life and Turbulent Future of Water.

A look at the bloody conflict in Egypt and the U.S. response with Kimberly Katz, associate professor of history at Towson University and an expert on the Middle East and North Africa; Daniel Serwer, a professor at Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies and a scholar at the Middle East Institute; and Yossra Taha, an Egyptian Ph.D. student at Cairo University.

A story of mystery, intrigue and the Supreme Court -- the 1879 murder of a man at a Kansas campsite and the case’s influence on the admissibility of hearsay evidence. Our guest, Marianne Wesson is professor of law at the University of Colorado and author of A Death at Crooked Creek: The Case of the Cowboy, the Cigarmaker, and the Love Letter.

A weekly look at the most interesting stories of the region with the reporters and editors who covered them.

With an intense drone campaign underway in Yemen and the Obama administration issuing warnings about ominous terror threats, is al-Qaeda on the rise and should Americans be worried about it? A conversation about al-Qaeda and Yemen, and President Obama’s statements on national security and the future of the war on terrorism, with Gregory Johnsen, author of The Last Refuge: Yemen, al-Qaeda and America’s War in Arabia, and Michael Greenberger, founder and director of the University of Maryland Center for Health and Homeland Security.

A month after the acquittal of George Zimmerman in the Trayvon Martin case, we take a hard look at Stand Your Ground laws with Kris Hundley, an investigative reporter for the Tampa Bay Times who worked on the paper’s revealing 2012 series on the Florida law. The Times’ analysis showed widespread confusion and disparities in the way the law has been used as a defense. Also: veteran Baltimore trial attorney Billy Murphy, a major critic of Stand Your Ground laws; and Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fort Walton Beach), a supporter of the law and the chairman of the legislature’s Stand Your Ground hearings, which were triggered by public outcry over the Zimmerman-Martin case.

J. Edgar Hoover called it “the greatest threat to the internal security of the country.” A look back to the 60s and the radical Black Panther Party – how and why it formed, where it flourished, and why so many young people from across the country risked their lives to be a part of the Panther’s socialist revolution. Joshua Bloom is co-author of Black Against Empire: The History and Politics of the Black Panther Party.