it's a design feature to prevent even the dumbest person dedicated to hurting themselves from doing so
Because the manufacturer can be sued if you are injured. And government regulations require them to be tamper proof.
Machine guards can be over-ridden e.g. Jog Override. However, the particular intervention must be performed by an Autherized Employee, working under a documented and trained procedure, which includes a Safe System of Work.
Safety guards are meant to separate moving machinery from people. Defeating the guards of a machine places you in harm's way. If you leave the machine with the guards out of place you are endangering a coworker. I don't know what you make on those machines, but I'm sure it's not worth losing a finger, hand, arm, or even your life just to make them a little faster. Guards don't make machines idiot proof, but they do keep most people from casually feeding themselves to the machine like some sort of bizarre human sacrifice.
