> As a European I find the level of gun violence in the US to be shocking

this is probably a perception problem. the uk doesnt have guns but has much higher violent crime with knives. in some ways, stabbing is much more violent and interpersonally malicious than pulling a trigger. there is a very close prevalence of violent crime per capita in US and UK, its just that stab wounds are easier to trest than gunshots.

the US has above average gun violence per capita, but acting like its some widespread danger is largely a construction of fear-driven media and sensationalism. most of US gun violence numbers come from highly localized pockets like detroit, LA, and chicago. its not a problem in almost all of America.