Would have been better had he attacked the kid with a bat?

Yeah, because he would have had to open the door to at least see who he was swinging the bat at. Also the kid would have at least had some chance of running away or perhaps other people in the area could have helped him. Having the gun in such a situation greatly narrows the possible outcomes.

Nobody is seriously talking about banning all guns. I respect your right to have a gun and to defend your families and your homes. I respect the right of responsible gun ownership. I own a gun.

We have a problem with too many guns falling into the wrong hands. We need reforms to help mitigate this problem. No solution will be perfect or solve the problem 100%, but we can do better. This is the discussion we should be having in this country.