Screw that, leave them in. Let's look at the numbers (taken from FBI Uniform Crime Reports).
Gun deaths in the US in 2010: 8,775
US Population in 2010: 308,745,538
Population killed by gunshot, all causes (suicide, murder, etc): 0.00284%
ZOMG THOSE GUNSLINGING YANKS ARE DROPPING LIKE FLIES!!
Okay, so you're using % because to many people % seem like a small number. What is acceptable to you? This number?
Sounds ok to me, but in the world of science, for something bad that's pretty high. For example lead. When we talk about lead detection, we look at trace detection. Parts per BILLION. Just saying that using a % figure and saying "wow that's low" doesn't mean much. It makes more sense to compare murder rates to other countries for that reason.
You're right, the number of gun deaths per year is very small relative to the population at a quick glance, but at the same time, this is a weapon designed to kill. If anything this number should be zero. Now that's not possible, but I think we should work to reduce this number (once again not saying we need to ban firearms).
No, the point is that almost ANYTHING can be turned into a weapon and used for the express purpose of hurting people.
I don't deny that. But to link cars and guns together is still a ridiculous comparison. Until people are actively using cars to mow down thousands of people a year with the intent of killing, cars really aren't an issue. Car deaths are due to idiots on the road, negligence, carelessness. I can assure you if people start using cars as a regular weapon that we're going to see controls clamped down on cars. The point remains that whichever tool people choose to use as a weapon will receive the most attention.
So right now that may be guns, but until people turn to other tools, I'm sorry, but guns will be the target of violence control.
I guess a similar analogy is preventing terrorism. Israel actively profiles people and has done an excellent in job in stopping people. People argue that racial profiling is bad, and I agree that it is, but in cases of limited resources, if I were to pick who to pat down, it wouldn't be the 3 year old toddler, but the 20-something male. And profiling isn't a stagnant tool either. If the stereotypical terrorist turns from being a typical 20-something Arab male into a 60-something Asian grandma, you bet your ass we will chance our profiling standards. It's all about adjusting to the current threat.