If it were my kid, I would want the death penalty. Which is why victim families shouldn't determine sentences. The amount of time which is appropriate is the amount of time that prevents the most child sexual abuse.

There is research that shows what risk factors lead to higher potential for abuse. The laws and sentencing have almost no relationship with those factors.

Throwing the book at these dudes is easy because they are unsympathetic and it allows people to pat themselves on the back for their self-righteousness. It makes us feel good about ourselves like we did something.

People are stuck on their feels. If I say the punishment for CSAM non-production crimes are too harsh, then I must secretly be a pedophile. But how many times have we also seen it that the people who are most self-righteous and draconian against some behavior end up being the ones who are secretly doing it? Attacking the messenger is stupid.

If I bring up any sort of argument, I get told it's a "fact" that CSAM consumption is different and cannot be compared to anything else. Which is not a fact at all, it's just people refusing to think.

We can study child porn like we study anything else. P2P and Drop Box work the same whether it's CSAM or Game of Thrones. Psychologists can study pedophilia just like they study anything else. There are basic behavioral drives all humans have in common.

There is research on this topic, and experts who study it. The evidence is more and more showing that the way we are dealing with CSAM does nothing to stop child sexual abuse and is more likely making it worse.