I have a German Shepherd. Ahhhh the crap that I hear, you'd be amazed that my entire family hasn't been killed in their sleep
I have had people SCREAM, throw whatever they are carrying at us and run into traffic to get to the other side of the street. Mind you, we were waiting for the parade to start and my dogs were being so well-behaved that this guy didn't even know we had been sitting 5 feet down the sidewalk from him for almost 20 minutes. He turned his head because someone asked if they could pet Singe and the little boy beside us started giggling and shrieking because Singe's tail smacked him in the head. Yup vicious dog, going to decapitate toddlers with his tail. :/ He continued to scream obscenities at us from the other side of the road about bringing a dangerous animal into a public place with small children.
Believe me, I know what the OP is feeling. I've also owned pit mixes in the past and they've all been big babies as well. The problem comes when owners/rescues/well-meaning people become convinced that all of the bad image is because the dog is "raised wrong" Any dog can do damage and, naturally, a bigger dog is going to have bigger teeth than a small dog. Some breeds are known to be more tolerant than others but when you talk those kind of generalizations you are talking about well-bred dogs from a responsible breeder. And we all know that the vast majority of animals on the planet weren't responsibly bred. These people ignore the requirements of being a responsible owner, sure that just because they were never mean to their puppy that he will never bite anyone.
WRONG. Bites have little to do with how the dog is raised. Sometimes, they don't even have anything to do with the dog itself; the people (owner or the public) cause the bite by ignoring the dog's discomfort and body language in certain situations.
How many youtube videos have you seen where someone is "proving" how great their dog is with children? Dog people watch those and feel like throwing up. Ears down/back, licking their lips, trying to get up and leave - all signs that the dog is uncomfortable with what is going on. Yet the owners tell the dog to stay where it is and laugh when the dog starts licking the baby's face - instead of being the cute sign of affection that the owner believes, it's the dog's last ditch effort to be submissive to this tiny human that is banging on his head and pulling his ears. Yet, when the dog eventually growls or god forbid snaps at the child, the dog is going to be the one paying the price and the owner will say "oh, he's always been so gentle. This came out of nowhere." They will never realized that they set the dog up to fail.
What the owner of ANY dog (not just "dangerous" breeds) needs to do is manage their dog. Yes, you have to raise them right - that is only common sense. You also have to make sure that they are in good health, not just wait until they are acting sick to take them to the vet (dogs mask their pain well but might still have a shorter temper due to an illness that the owner doesn't know about). Above all, you need to manage them wisely, both at home and in public. That means you socialize them well. You keep them leashed or contained, not letting them roam the neighborhood. When you are out walking, keep them by your side and behaved, not straining at the end of a 25' flexie-lead (those things should be outlawed anyway). Pick up poop. Don't let your dog bark at everyone who passes by on the sidewalk. Don't let him run up and greet people, no matter how friendly he is. Be aware of his surroundings - see the child who is about to run up and tackle hug your dog and stop him before he has the chance to do it. See the person down the sidewalk starting to tense up at the sight of your dog and move to the side and put your dog into a sit or down so that they can be more at ease - smile and say hello, don't get defensive because you know how friendly your dog is.
If you do all of these things, then you know that you have done everything that you can do for your dog. Yes, there will still be haters but you can hold your head high and your dog's behavior will speak for itself to the rest of the world.
It's never in how you raise them because, like people, there are going to be some dogs born that just have a screw loose. I think the statement should be changed to "It's all how you MANAGE them" 
