At his first formal press conference as DC’s mayor, Vince Gray recounted a shooting accident that occurred at his home when he was a boy. The video is here. It’s worth checking out.

Today on NewsTalk, we discussed whether having a gun in the home makes you more safe – or less. We talked with Paul Helmke, head of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. He insists he’s not “anti-gun,” but he does think that having a gun in the home carries significant risk.

We invited the NRA to join our conversation, but they did not respond to our request. Helmke said that’s standard. He told us that in the 4+ years he’s been running the Brady campaign, he’s appeared on television with someone from the NRA only twice.

Helmke faulted Congress for not asking the CDC to study whether it’s smart to have a gun in the home. Gun-rights advocates have used their clout on the Hill to block such research in the past.

Helmke also said the shooting in Tucson should convince lawmakers that it’s time to restore the ban on high-capacity magazines. He said that if the shooter had had to re-load after firing 10 shots – instead of 30 – some of the bloodshed might not have occurred.

The first part of our Q&A with Helmke can be seen today at 6pm and 8:30pm on NewsChannel 8. Also in today’s replay: our analysis of the unrest in Egypt. Our guest: The New America Foundation’s Amjad Atallah.

Lastly, we marked Obama spokesman Robert Gibbs’s last week at the White House press room podium by playing a Politico video that chronicles all the things he is not. Check it out here 

Thursday at 10am: Reporter Jen Donelan on the heart attack that almost ended her life. Also, Jim Webb’s decision to retire from the U.S. Senate