Pace,
Since you keep coming back to the danger to those on the ground, here's my thinking:
1. Statistically, people on the ground get rarely hurt in GA aircraft accidents. It happens, but it is exceedingly rare.
2. By using a chute, I am dramatically reducing both my impact energy and my footprint during a crash or emergency landing.
Hence, among the multitude of things to considers during a forced landing, damage to people on the ground is one of them, but it is not front and center since it is a low probability event. As, I have to add, this CAPS landing in a impressively demonstrates.