The one thing I'd add - familiarity breeds complacency and complacency with firearms can lead to tragedy. Fear of guns is totally rational given the damage that can be inflicted via their use. The key is to not be paralyzed by the fear. Just like driving a car - remembering the rules of the road can be daunting at first, but with enough practice and a calm, collected instructor it will become 2nd nature in no time. Handling a firearm is no different - there are dozens of rules to remember and forgetting them can have dire consequences, but as long as the student is willing to learn, handles the tasks slowly and carefully, and keeps in mind the purpose of the tool (read: not to show off), all will be fine.

I don't know about the generalizations of anti-gun people though... In my experience, they aren't necessarily paralyzed by fear of guns in general but by their perception that "there are so many bad/mentally unstable people out there." The unknown commodity bugs them and allowing potentially irresponsible people to have guns is too much risk to bare. I personally think it comes down to a difference in beliefs about human nature and perception/understanding of risk.