Pornography on Internet

Re “Child Porn Raids Lead to Suicides,” Oct. 23:

I am repelled by child abuse in all its forms, as I am repelled by crimes such as armed robbery and murder, but it seems to me that committing armed robbery is one thing, preparing an image portraying someone committing armed robbery is considerably removed from the act and looking at an image, prepared by someone else, of an armed robbery in progress is at a greater distance still.

As regards the subject of child pornography, I would hope that law enforcement officers devote their time to strategies designed to ferret out people who practice child abuse. They are missing the point if they pursue editors of digital images and Web surfers who download files.

OLIVER SEELY

Lakewood

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Now let me get this straight: A retired serviceman downloads child pornography off of the Internet, gets caught and kills himself. And I am supposed to feel sorry for him? What about the victimized child, who was not only molested once, but knows his image is being sent over the Internet again and again? How many times are we going to permit the rape to occur? Since when was “just looking” at these pictures allowed by any decent member of society? Only in a society that does not value children.

LAUREL BATCHELOR

Brea

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While I find child pornography deplorable and despicable, I strongly believe that the government punishing viewers (not doers) is a far more abhorrent act, which leads me to ask, what’s next?

VIC VARGAS

Long Beach