It seems like you guys are splitting already split hairs?Let me see if I understand what you guys are arguing:
AzCDLFred is saying that safeties should be engaged whenever possible because it is probably how it was designed for safety reasons since some people can be stupid and unsafe (I would imagine a good example is the number of YouTube videos of reckless gun owners).
MAC702 is saying that these safeties are not critical to firearm function (making it go "bang"), and so the focus should be on proper handling of firearms (teaching people to keep their booger hook away from the bang switch).
Not quite. I'm confident that we both agree that firearms safety isn't merely whether or not a mechanical lever is placed on a pistol. If I buy a firearm with a safety lever on it, for
consistency in safe gun handling, I will use it. If I find that the features are not to my liking I will not engage in a workaround, however I will get rid of the gun and buy one that meets my needs.
As a perpetual student, I have been in several classes where other students were using those decocker/safety monstrosities. I saw one gun so poorly designed that it was way too easy to engage the safety when you wanted to do the opposite. I've also seen others where the safety lever was so flat and hard to move that it could not be flicked without using both hands. So, I can understand why others would choose to avoid having that happen. However, from my perspective that leads to unsafe gun handling because it induces the reasoning of "normally I'm a safe gun handler but in this case with this gun, I'll make an exception." That's not a mindset I want to get into.
Personally, I want as few external levers as possible that's why I carry a Glock. For a long time I carried a 1911 (in Condition 1) and always wondered why there were redundant safeties (grip and slide) when I knew that all I needed was to keep my finger off the trigger until I was ready to shoot. However, after taking a 1911 armorer's class I now understand that that combination of safeties had more to do than get the gun ready to fire.
Bottom line - Safe gun handling is independent of the features on the pistol. Its starts in the brain and should be consistent. Making exceptions for certain firearms with built in safeties, breaks that inconsistency from my perspective. I watched a man with a 1911 shoot himself in the leg because he was not consistent about his gun handling.
Fred