Phenom, you asked why not restrict other things that can be used as weapons.
Maybe some members who have worked in correctional facilities could give you the list of commonly banned items for the very reason that they can be used as weapons.
With a little martial arts training, or just a lot of ingenuity, there is almost nothing that can't be used as a weapon. Worthless people have been committing crimes against others since the dawn of time.
Firearms do have a certain "point and shoot" (pardon the pun) simplicity. If a 12 year old boy came at me with a baseball bat I'd make him eat it. The same 12 year old w/ a .22 can really mess you up. A sling (traditional stone and strip of leather, not a slingshot) can be plenty deadly, but that takes _skill_.
I'm not saying that shooting doesn't take skill. I'm not! But if you place the barrel 6" from someone, marksmanship isn't really the question.
It's a lot harder to figure out how to kill someone with less powerful weapons, I think.
I personally tend to come down with Erebus, that if you are too dangerous to be armed, you shouldn't be out. (whether that's death penalty or life in prison is a separate debate). If you are in public, you ought to have the RKBA.
Cause the guys on paper who are going to commit a gun crime are going to commit a gun crime, whether or not it's legal to own the gun to commit a crime with it. (I can't believe I even typed that sentence.)