Comment by otterley

At heart, I do believe that the politicians are well-intended. It's difficult to argue that we shouldn't try to prevent the production and dissemination of CSAM. That traffickers in CSAM are more sophisticated than ever, and encrypted communications combined with the dark web help them cover their tracks are undeniable facts.

Freedom of speech is not, and has never been absolute. For example, it's unlawful to lie about the content of food and drug products. Fraud is unlawful. We also hold people liable for defamation.

You're right that technology would allow governments to cast a broad net over communication and open the door to certain kinds of abuse. It's a completely legitimate concern.

This is where legal and constitutional protections can come into play. The ability to collect communications should be coupled with safeguards to prevent people from being prosecuted for lawful speech. To have one without the other would be a tragedy. And, yes, sometimes despots need to be dealt with through violent means (politics by other means, see Clausewitz).