Guns aren’t safe. They aren’t supposed to be safe, or at least they aren’t supposed to be any safer than any other tool. They are a tool that is very specifically designed to grant their user an increased ability to injure a target with ease from a safe distance. This ability grants the user an increased ability to hunt, to defend themselves, to defend their property and family, and yes to harm or kill other people and predators.

A hammer, a knife, a blunt object, and a car can all provide these same abilities with differing efficiency, but we still have them, too, even though they aren’t necessary. You don’t need to drive. Walk or take a bus. You don’t need a hammer to drive nails. Use a rock instead. Although there is a famous story about a guy named Cain, that makes a strong argument for getting rid of rocks, too. No one needs a baseball bat. Those are only used for recreation, so it should be easy to get rid of those dangerous weapons, right? I’m sure we can get rid of those dangerous knives, too. Our ancestors didn’t need them to survive, so I’m sure we can do without them to make the world a safer place.

This is why we have a rule that none of these things can be used for that thing about killing other people under threat of harm or death unless it was done under pretty specific circumstances.

You are statistically safer around a gun than you are around a ladder, but I’m guessing ladders aren’t on your list of things to rid the world of for some reason.