There is a certain naivety to assign firearms status beyond inanimate objects. Violence begins and ends with the will of Man.
History is replete with, assassinations, genocides, murder, and other acts of violence.
Misplacing the context of violence on firearms, is as valid as placing context on knives, clubs, or ones own fist. We live in a world fraught with dangers. We shape our environment with tools to enhance our survival. Very few would condemn aboriginal peoples for hunting animals so they can live. Predatory animals, such as one of the large cats, do not make moral choices.