I've never jumped before, but with all due respect, that don't sound right.
Like many broad statements, mine was an oversimplification. The actual type of terrain matters, as does the type of parachute and the skill of the jumper. But in general, people who have not been around parachute operations do not understand how dangerous landing can be. You are coming down fast, with both vertical and forward speed, and nothing to protect your body. It is similar to jumping off the hood of a car going 10 mph. Doesn't sound too bad, and on nice flat, soft ground it usually is not. But add obstacles such as trees, rocks, buildings, power lines, etc and the potential for serious injury is high. I've seen people get badly banged up going into trees, and know of people killed on impacts with trees and power lines. I also saw a guy drown in a pond not much bigger than a B-Ball court. Landing on pavement without a helmet is another good way to get hurt badly.
Round emergency chutes have very limited maneuvering ability, so once you exit, you are pretty much going to land where the wind decides to put you. So-called "steerable" chutes have a fixed forward drive of 10mph and the ability to rotate yourself to point the forward vector where you want to go, but that is it. Your glide ratio is on the order of 200 yards per 1000 feet of descent. You have some chance of picking a softer spot, but it is very limited, and if it is your first 10 jumps or so, forget it. I once saw a very experienced military jumper go through the windshield of a parked vehicle in the middle of an open field the size of a large airport.
Square skydive rigs have much more maneuvering ability, but that comes with it's own set of challenges, as you are essentially flying a cloth glider. A skilled skydiver can glide a long way and land in a small open space with zero descent rate. But they have a lot of forward drive, so if you do hit a fixed object the impact will be much faster, and if you screw up the flare timing you fall out of the sky from 20 feet or face plant at 30 mph. The guys you see jumping footballs into stadiums have thousands of jumps and years of experience. Most skydivers need a large level clearing to land safely; if you have that, why not just land the plane?
Bottom line, an airplane like a T-Craft has at least as much maneuvering ability as a parachute, and a lot more protection around you. Going into treetops, I'll take the plane every time. Would rather not leave my testicles hanging on a limb.
