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> It’s the motivations that people have problems with

I don't agree with you there and I don't think the author is being insincere. The problem with child pornography is the harm, or potential for harm, of children. Why would you care about a person's motivations as a root issue?



It's not just the harm to children that people have problems with, it's the power difference between an adult and a child. Adults have power over children, they place their trust in us. We are supposed to use our power over children to make them better people, to make their generation better than the previous. Society (perhaps only Western society it seems) does not like relationships where one person uses their power over someone else to the betterment of themselves (Harvey Weinstein and the rest of the #metoo movement comes to mind).

So I think that's the root cause of the "disgust" for this type of art and the motivations behind it; it facilities dishonest use of power.


But when you only look at drawings, no one is using their power over someone else. Photographs, however, do require someone to have used their power over someone else, namely the photographer. Which is why I would consider looking at (and hence stimulating the production of) the latter immoral, and less so the former.


The desire is the same, whether it’s animated or not. That’s the issue - you still desire sexual power imbalances. It’s not about using the power, it’s about the desire.

Anyways, these are just my musings on the matter. I am not an expert or familiar with the subject at all. I just was curious as to why society still is disgusted by child porn even when the harm is removed


So that's what OP disagreed with. Some people might care about intention, but when you said

> It's not just the harm to children that people have problems with,

then "people" sounds like "most people". Now I don't know what most people feel like, but at least for me and OP, harm to children is what we have problems with. Desire for power, not so much.

(Obviously, just musings from my side as well. Disgust for child porn when harm is removed happens to be one of my pet peeves - I believe that it is easier for people not to act on their desires if they are able to discuss them with others without being rejected by society.)




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