The emphasis on internet child porn is ludicrous. Cracking down on the internet is just a way to push the problem underground without really tackling it, lets the politicians feel smug while kids go on being abused. I say so because:
a) Yes, child abusers do also tend to be among the highest searchers for child porn but then geeks who like gadgets probably spend a lot of time online looking for gadgets. People search for what interests them, a correlation does not show a cause.
b) There are extremely high rates of child abuse in some of the world's poorest societies where almost nobody has internet access. In Uganda and among the Australian aborigines for example. It is more about the culture of the society than online influences.
Given point a) it would make far more sense to do nothing whatever about internet child porn and then investigate those who view it.
Similarly, terrorism etc.
a) Yes, child abusers do also tend to be among the highest searchers for child porn but then geeks who like gadgets probably spend a lot of time online looking for gadgets. People search for what interests them, a correlation does not show a cause.
b) There are extremely high rates of child abuse in some of the world's poorest societies where almost nobody has internet access. In Uganda and among the Australian aborigines for example. It is more about the culture of the society than online influences.
Given point a) it would make far more sense to do nothing whatever about internet child porn and then investigate those who view it.
Similarly, terrorism etc.
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