I don't think anyone is trying to minimize the heinousness of child abuse. I think the point being made is that just because a particularly technique may be ef

I don't think anyone is trying to minimize the heinousness of child abuse. I think the point being made is that just because a particularly technique may be effective against a particular crime, doesn't mean that technique is morally or legally right. We could castrate everyone even accused of pedophilia and that would probably discourage some amount of child sexual abuse, but clearly that wouldn't be right. Similarly, we could forcibly commit everyone with a history of mental illness in mental institutions and maybe that would've prevented Sandy Hook, Aurora, and most recently the Santa Monica shooting. Yet, that wouldn't be right. In short, the ends don't justify the means. Usurping constitutional rights because it would make it more convenient to fight terrorism is the worst possible path we could take in dealing with the threat of terrorism.