'ALL THE HARDCORE KIDS IN GANGS - DON'T CARE IF THEY DIE'

There are more guns on the street than ever, and the bad guys are more
likely to use them, says a former gang member.

"The gangs these days think it is OK to shoot each other," said the
former "lieutenant" of a ruthless Vancouver-based street gang.

"The more publicity, the more they like it."

The man, in his early 20s, now has a family and business and no ties
to the criminal world. He says the current violence is often over
control of the lucrative drug trade.

"These young guys all have guns. There are a lot of guns on the
streets. Before, in the mid-'90s, it would be a baseball bat or a
shanking -- somebody would be stabbed, but now you get shot."

When he was a gang member, fights would break out over girlfriends, he
said.

"Before, it was about girls. Now it's drugs," he said. "People are
making thousands of dollars a day dealing drugs."

He said gangs woo prospective members. School friends, with little
family guidance and lots of time on their hands, become involved in
petty crimes, such as break-and-enter, car theft and joy riding --
crimes that carry few consequences for them because of their youth.

"The kids are bored. That's when they get in trouble," he said, adding
that by the time they are adults it may be too late to save them.

"All the hardcore kids in gangs, they don't care about the violence --
they don't care if they die," he said.

Simon Fraser University criminologist Ray Corrado, who specializes in
youth gangs, said a large part of the problem is the glamourization of
guns and their availability.

"If someone is packing a gun, you're going to be packing one, too," he
said.