Lets be honest. Please. I have never bought the "being there for safety" thing. Yes, that is one reason. But the FAs are hired there to do many other things. I am sure that if an airline offered their FAs to take away from their duties all that "other" stuff like serving meals, drinks, bringing pillows, etc. they could reduce costs by having less FAs and also by paying them less. Competition would probably be higher for those jobs as the FAs would be able to read and chat in their own time and space as their work load would be reduced.

If they are there for safety only, how come we do not have also attendants in buses and trains. Trains and buses also crash and people also die when that happens.

BTW, the first time I flew on an Asian airline (I was on business) I got up to get water. The FA said she would bring it to my seat, and when she did she told me to call her anytime with the call button if I needed a refill. I immdiately thought of UA, AA, DL, ....et al.