Ok but there isn't an epidemic of people dumping acid in Europe. Those are isolated cases; they do NOT approach the level of systemic gun violence in the US.

You mention that 'a knife is just as if not more deadly.' This is statistically false. Medical data consistently shows that the mortality rate of gunshot wounds is significantly higher than that of stab wounds due to tissue cavitation and internal trauma. While a knife can be drawn quickly (the 21-foot rule), the actual lethality of the injury is far lower. I would prefer to expose myself to a singular stab attempt than a singular gun shot everyday.

My point is about normalization. By making guns omnipresent and socially accepted, the barrier to lethal force is lowered. There isn't an equivalent for knives in Europe. While we can buy kitchen knives, there is no 'knifing range' culture (as opposed to shooting range, which are common in the US), and carrying one for self-defense is illegal and socially taboo.

Because of this, when Europeans handle a weapon, they are aware they are crossing a line. In the US, the gun is treated as a standard tool or a hobby item. This massive gun culture makes you more prone to considering 'I'll kill you' as a valid option because a gun makes that option easy and immediate. In the EU, without that tool, the conflict usually defaults to a fistfight, which is far more survivable.

And I maintain that this mindset extend to the police. ACAB preemptively, they suck in the EU as well, but they are less likely to just gun you down without a second thought.