Channeling as you put it still makes use of the animals natural tendencies. How exactly would you say that Pits are therefore channeled when kept as family dogs?
Bears can also be trained to be pets, however I don't think its wise. Pits on the other hand are not bears, but dogs. Dogs are pack animals and have a strong tendency to bond. Thus, most well kept Pits are also safe animals around their "pack". However, all dog breeds have a tendency to also be territorial in regard to those outside the pack. A dog with greater innate tendencies and capabilities to do great harm are a greater danger.
Pit Bulls are more dangerous than Labs all other things being equal. I don't think breed bans are in order, but neither do I think animal control should consider all dogs to be the same. A Yorki that runs the neighborhood is not the same danger as a Pit Bull that does. For the record, I had a fantastic rescue dog that was our family dog for 12 years that almost certainly had some Pit or Mastiff in him. He was sweet as could be around the house, but he was extremely aggressive toward strange men when I wasn't around (one of the reasons to have such a dog). That said, I was very careful to keep him on my property and not to put other people at risk. He never gave me any indication that he might harm a child, but I never felt it wise to leave him alone with small children.
Mine runs with me every morning, and pulls a wagon two or three times a week.
I know many owners that use weight training, and some who compete. That’s really the best way to give the pit a ‘fight’ that he can win.
I would never say that pit bulls are no different from other dogs. Even when you raise & handle one correctly, you have to be more vigilant than with another breed.
Eliminating any concept of possesion, food aggression, and jumping as a greeting helps too, if you have the time.
The instinct to fight may still be there, but it’s buried under so many layers of conditioning and odebience training that it would take something drastic to bring it out.
Sorry, I guess I should've been more specific here. A pit can be trained to use their innate abilities to fulfill jobs totally different from what they were bred for, just like any other dog.