• mipadaitu@lemmy.world
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      10 months ago

      You’re assuming that implementing a safety feature makes something safer. That’s not always the case.

      No sarcasm here, just adding switches and blockers can actually make something less safe. Autopilot features that keep cars in the center of the lane can make the driver less attentive, so it can make the car less safe overall. Softer boxing gloves encourage more head punches, making brain trauma worse. More padding on football players make hits harder, causing more damage overall.

      If a manual safety switch on a gun makes people complacent, they could cause more negligent discharges. If people feel that a manual safety switch would make using the gun in an emergency more difficult, they may leave it off, causing the gun to be less safe than if it didn’t exist (because the manufacturer would need to design around that).