Oh boy, where do you start? 
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/gun28.html
Teens say it's easy to get gun
June 28, 2000
BY LUCIO GUERRERO STAFF REPORTER
Forty percent of teenagers say they can get a handgun with little effort, according to a national survey that will be released today.
Northbrook-based Teenage Research Unlimited also found that teens largely believe video games do not make teens violent and, by a 3-1 ratio, they believe there are too many guns in society.
Gun Statistics
Northbrook-based Teenage Research Unlimited conducted a nationwide survey of teenagers on their attitudes towards guns.
36% -- Number of teens who said they know someone who has been shot.
28% -- Know of a handgun in their house, garage or barn.
61% -- Do not believe that `video games can make teenagers violent.'
41% -- Could get a handgun `if I really wanted to.'
As for the availability, some say teens don't even have to leave their house to find a gun.
"There are a lot of smart people out there, and I would say that is true," said 18-year-old New Trier High School student David Joutras. "If someone wants to get a gun, all they have to do is go to the Internet or something and they'll get one."
That notion has a chilling effect on some students, who still talk about Columbine and other school shootings.
"The sad thing is that there are plenty of sick people out there who want to make money and would be happy to give a gun to a student," said William Purkhiser, a senior at Homewood-Flossmoor High School.
"I think that's pretty scary."
According to a recent report issued by the Department of Education, over 6,000 students were expelled in 1996-1997 for bringing guns to their public schools. A 1995 survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that two in 25 high school students reported having carried a gun in the last 30 days.
Last year there were 460 people murdered with firearms in Chicago. Contributing to that were 165 offenders under the age of 21 who were charged with murders involving firearms, according to Chicago police. And 158 of those gun-related homicide victims were under the age of 21.
CDC also reports that every day in America, 14 children age 19 and under are killed in gun homicides, suicides, and unintentional shootings. For every child killed by a gun, four more are wounded.
"I'd have to say that I was not surprised by a lot of the results, but I was disturbed," said Claude Robinson, director of community services for the Uhlich Children's Home of Chicago, a child welfare agency that offers foster care, teen parenting services and counseling for neglected children.
Among the other findings in the new study, which surveyed 550 American teens:
* More than one-third of the teens said they know someone who has been shot.
* About 30 percent know of a handgun in their house, garage or barn.
* More than 60 percent do not believe that video games can make teenagers violent.
Uhlich sponsored the survey in order to use the results with its "Hands Without Guns" program, a program in which teens go to area schools and community centers to talk to their peers about gun violence.
According to the survey, teens are also more likely to believe that gun violence--such as what happened at Columbine--won't happen in their schools. More than 58 percent said they were not afraid "that gun violence might happen in my school."
"Guns are not something that my friends and I talk about," said Christine Stepanski, an incoming senior at St. Francis High School in Wheaton. "I mean, we live in the suburbs."
"The only time that I can remember people talking about guns was after Columbine, and people were wondering if that could ever happen here," the 17-year-old said.
Along with releasing the findings today at a news conference in the Daley Center, the group will also announce a vigil it will conduct over the summer remembering the children who have been shot in Cook County.
They are hoping to raise awareness about gun control, something that group member Muhammed Brown thinks is necessary.
"It's scary," the 21-year-old said. "I live in a rough neighborhood. I can purchase a handgun from someone's trunk."
Copyright 2000, Digital Chicago Inc.
http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/gun28.html
Teens say it's easy to get gun
June 28, 2000
BY LUCIO GUERRERO STAFF REPORTER
Forty percent of teenagers say they can get a handgun with little effort, according to a national survey that will be released today.
Northbrook-based Teenage Research Unlimited also found that teens largely believe video games do not make teens violent and, by a 3-1 ratio, they believe there are too many guns in society.
Gun Statistics
Northbrook-based Teenage Research Unlimited conducted a nationwide survey of teenagers on their attitudes towards guns.
36% -- Number of teens who said they know someone who has been shot.
28% -- Know of a handgun in their house, garage or barn.
61% -- Do not believe that `video games can make teenagers violent.'
41% -- Could get a handgun `if I really wanted to.'
As for the availability, some say teens don't even have to leave their house to find a gun.
"There are a lot of smart people out there, and I would say that is true," said 18-year-old New Trier High School student David Joutras. "If someone wants to get a gun, all they have to do is go to the Internet or something and they'll get one."
That notion has a chilling effect on some students, who still talk about Columbine and other school shootings.
"The sad thing is that there are plenty of sick people out there who want to make money and would be happy to give a gun to a student," said William Purkhiser, a senior at Homewood-Flossmoor High School.
"I think that's pretty scary."
According to a recent report issued by the Department of Education, over 6,000 students were expelled in 1996-1997 for bringing guns to their public schools. A 1995 survey conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that two in 25 high school students reported having carried a gun in the last 30 days.
Last year there were 460 people murdered with firearms in Chicago. Contributing to that were 165 offenders under the age of 21 who were charged with murders involving firearms, according to Chicago police. And 158 of those gun-related homicide victims were under the age of 21.
CDC also reports that every day in America, 14 children age 19 and under are killed in gun homicides, suicides, and unintentional shootings. For every child killed by a gun, four more are wounded.
"I'd have to say that I was not surprised by a lot of the results, but I was disturbed," said Claude Robinson, director of community services for the Uhlich Children's Home of Chicago, a child welfare agency that offers foster care, teen parenting services and counseling for neglected children.
Among the other findings in the new study, which surveyed 550 American teens:
* More than one-third of the teens said they know someone who has been shot.
* About 30 percent know of a handgun in their house, garage or barn.
* More than 60 percent do not believe that video games can make teenagers violent.
Uhlich sponsored the survey in order to use the results with its "Hands Without Guns" program, a program in which teens go to area schools and community centers to talk to their peers about gun violence.
According to the survey, teens are also more likely to believe that gun violence--such as what happened at Columbine--won't happen in their schools. More than 58 percent said they were not afraid "that gun violence might happen in my school."
"Guns are not something that my friends and I talk about," said Christine Stepanski, an incoming senior at St. Francis High School in Wheaton. "I mean, we live in the suburbs."
"The only time that I can remember people talking about guns was after Columbine, and people were wondering if that could ever happen here," the 17-year-old said.
Along with releasing the findings today at a news conference in the Daley Center, the group will also announce a vigil it will conduct over the summer remembering the children who have been shot in Cook County.
They are hoping to raise awareness about gun control, something that group member Muhammed Brown thinks is necessary.
"It's scary," the 21-year-old said. "I live in a rough neighborhood. I can purchase a handgun from someone's trunk."
Copyright 2000, Digital Chicago Inc.
