Table saw is going to be, by a huge margin, the most dangerous tool in most amateur woodworker shops. You need to exercise great care and respect around power tools, but the table saw requires particular care. All tools, power and non-power can be used safely, but you need to learn and internalize shop safety practices. My dad taught wood shop in school so I got a good boost by being immersed with shop safety from a very young age, but anyone can learn the right habits.
Start with hand tools while you're learning the basics. Get good eye and ear protection--don't skimp. Learn how to sand. Ease your way into power tools as you find you need them. I wouldn't start out in woodworking by filling my garage with $10K worth of power tools right off the bat.
I agree, my table saw still scares the living shit out of me. When I had some tension in a board I was ripping down clamp up on the blade and start to buck, I couldn't reach down for the switch, so I jumped away and yanked the cord from the wall. It was a very tense 4-5 seconds.
Afterward I calmed down, i flipped the board around started ripping from the other side to meet in the middle and everything was better.
I bought a home last year and I think the cardinal rule of power tools is that you only really should buy one when you have some project in mind for which you are going to use it immediately.
Start with hand tools while you're learning the basics. Get good eye and ear protection--don't skimp. Learn how to sand. Ease your way into power tools as you find you need them. I wouldn't start out in woodworking by filling my garage with $10K worth of power tools right off the bat.