if anything, it's a great way to teach "Yes,
this could be a hazard, so to avoid
problems we do (this, that, the other)".

Yep. Same thing when it comes to firearms. My dad, begin an excellent
gunsmith as well as a phenomenal tool and die man, always had guns in
the house, in various stages of repair and fully functional.

I shot my first rifle (.22) when I was 4. My first handgun when I was
6. Dad always had the policy that if you wanted to shoot, just ask and
he'd take you shooting, but if we EVER touched a gun without his
immediate authorization and supervision, we'd not be touching one for a
long, long time. We'd probably not be sitting down for a bit longer
than that too.

Worked for me and my sister.

My oldest shot his first rifle at 4, same .22 that was mine. We've got
the same policy for swords (he's got a nice collection of them he
really enjoys looking at and showing of) as well as their bows.

My son was at a friends house and his friend found a pistol (had a
trigger lock and wasn't loaded). My son asked to hold it and took it
straight to his friends dad.

Teach 'em proper handling of dangerous things and they'll be a lot
safer than if you isolate them.

Tillman