But we could say the same about thousands of things. One of my friends died when we were 12 on a snowmobile (and two other people I know have been injured in accidents) and as such I have never, ever gone near one and never will. I think they are ridiculously dangerous and unnecessary. Same with alcohol. Even having an uncle (not a parent or grandparent) as an acoholic is enough to limit me to one drink maybe once a month. Again, something that in the wrong hands becomes life threatening to others (uncle has been arrested for DUI) and unnecessary for the vast majority of the population. But at the same time, I don't really care if others drink or ride their snowmobiles. *I* won't do it, but I don't judge people by it or see any need to legislate it.
Also, maybe where you live hunting is not necessary but where I live there are populations of animals that are out of control. They are dying of starvation or wasting diseases that are spreading because of the dense population. Hunting is not a free for all. Everyone I know hunts with valid permits. The DNR closely regulates permits and the animal population. What permits you can get totally depends on the gender of the animal you want to hunt, what type of land you hunt (private vs. gov't), and what county you are in. We actually need MORE hunting because the populations are still growing exponentially. Last fall they introduced an early rifle season on private land to try to get things under control. We have killed off and driven out all the natural predators (mainly wolves) by taking over the land for farms and suburban housing, so I guess it's only fair that the humans take responsibility for the current state of the animal population and try to keep things healthy and in balance.
My personal feeling is that concealed weapon permits need to be taken more seriously and I don't have any problem with laws or regulations regarding how weapons (hunting) and ammo are stored. I don't think anyone in our family would be bothered by being required to keep guns unloaded and locked in certified gun safes since that's what everyone does anyway.
But, as yolland again pointed out, these types of weapons just aren't responsible for the type of crime people keep alluding to. I don't think anyone but the active military & security have any business owning and operating an assault type weapon.