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I think buying and piracy belongs to the same category. Those are just means to obtain something. Some will steal, some will pay.

I understand your concept of "reasearching". I'm probably doing similar thing, because I collect guro, ryona and alternative hentai , without masturbating to it. That being said, I still want more, and you also want more.
While you want new things, new interests, you are still looking it in this, let me call it, genre. It's not like violence, and old kinks lost their appeal for you, right?

Interests may change, but the archetype stays the same. Person digging CP will be picky just like anybody else, and his/hers hunger be everlasting just anybody's else. As I've stated, this is addiction.

I don't know, how much there is CP out there. I know it was pretty common on the deep web, but I never touched that stuff. If you are right about humongous amount of CP, than maybe legalising hosting and downloading CP for own usage would be solution. Especially if kids are making this shit themselves. But if half of available CP is from 1980, or features bathing babies, than nope.

This funny fact is very interesting! It's 16 years old having sex with 15 years old situation. 16 years old will be treated as a pedophile. That's some great moral dillema.
If said kid cooked meth instead of filming CP, would this be any different? He know, he is making illegal stuff, and he will be punished, if he get cought. With meth he is indirectly hurting someone, but filming his own body is harmless. But you can say this is prostitution, which is illegal in many countries.