If your only source of information is the mainstream media, what you think you know may not be correct. Take the quiz below and test your knowledge. Thousands of children die annually in gun accidents. Gun accidents involving children are actually at record lows, although you wouldn't know it from listening to the mainstream media. In 1997, the last year for which data are available, only 142 children under 15 years of age died in gun accidents, and the total number of gun-related deaths for this age group was 642.
More children die each year in accidents involving bikes, space heaters or drownings.
Gun shows are responsible for a large number of firearms falling into the hands of criminals. All commercial arms dealers at gun shows must run background checks, and the only people exempt from them are the small number of non-commercial sellers. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, at most 2 percent of guns used by criminals are purchased at gun shows, and most of those were purchased legally by people who passed background checks. The tragedy at Columbine High School a year ago illustrates the deficiencies of current gun control laws. The two shotguns and rifle used by Harris and Klebold were purchased by a girlfriend who would have passed a background check, and the TEC-9 handgun used by them was already illegal.