[wrigh430]

I got another Death Threat at work earlier this week.

Usually we just ignore them because they come in the variety of "If you set foot on my propertry while I'm there I won't hesitate to shoot you." I do get shot at every now and then, never more than twice a year though. But this one was differnet. He said he was going to find out where I live and kill me at my home. Law enforcement called me to let me know that this guy is a credible threat.

Anyway I posted on Facebook that I had recieved a death threat and that if I die in the near future I'd like someone to put in my obituary that I hold the republican party personally responsible. "Facebook" thought it was a joke, like I was trying to be witty or something. I felt really hurt that no one took me seriously and that some of them even indicated that they would prefer me dead.

So I came here--tried to talk in the chat room, got pretty much the same response.

I'm tired of being shot at and threatened, but job opportunities in my field are nearly all limited to being out here in the west, which means that we get shot at by all those red state inhabitants.

I write as a means of escape. I've had non-fiction works published, but never any ficition. For some unknown reason I started writing a novel. I'm at about 40,000 words now and I'm finding that I prefer my imaginary world to the real one. (No surprise there, the real world sucks.) I'm emotionally attached to my characters and don't want to come out of the novel. I feel really confused.

[Moreta]

Sorry you got a death threat. I imagine that is really stressful. Remember to take care of yourself. It's ok to get lost in a novel, just remember there's an outside world too.

[ManOfConstantSorrow]

I am pretty sure you should not be shot at in your place of employment. Not even in the USA where your right to bear arms and shoot at people in a surprisingly wide range of situations appears to be enshrined in law.

Do you have a formal risk assessment on this? Is it adequate, or do you need to bring this up with your manager? I would have thought that a duty of care to employees (statutory in the EU) would include pursuing threat-makers in the courts and seeking damages and getting orders for them to cease/desist and face jail if they come within say 500yds of you (or 1000yds if they are good shot).

[wrigh430]

Originally Posted by ManOfConstantSorrow

I am pretty sure you should not be shot at in your place of employment. Not even in the USA where your right to bear arms and shoot at people in a surprisingly wide range of situations appears to be enshrined in law.

Do you have a formal risk assessment on this? Is it adequate, or do you need to bring this up with your manager? I would have thought that a duty of care to employees (statutory in the EU) would include pursuing threat-makers in the courts and seeking damages and getting orders for them to cease/desist and face jail if they come within say 500yds of you (or 1000yds if they are good shot).

My manager knows, and we have a Dangerous Address process that we go through when we have "real" threats. We cannot pursue the issue in court because I am a Federal Employee and all citizens have a right to privacy from the government. If I worked for a private company we could pursue it because their is no right to privacy from corporations. The only reason the police were involved was because the respondent called them wanting them to arrest me for collecting water samples from the streams that cross his property.

[wrigh430]

Originally Posted by Moreta

Sorry you got a death threat. I imagine that is really stressful. Remember to take care of yourself. It's ok to get lost in a novel, just remember there's an outside world too.

Thanks. I'm a little over 50,500 words now. I'm feeling better too. I've been using the novel to explore emotions that I don't really address in the real world. It's been an interesting process.

I never used to be protective of what I wrote and could understand why so many authors were. My editor loves that I don't care what he does with a story after I turn it in. The novel though is like family. I have 400 years worth of fictional history swimming in my brain. It's just different this time around.

[waterknob1234]

I am not sure what kind of work you do but it sounds frightening to get death threats. I live here in the USA and I know people have the "right to bear arms." But I don't think people should have the right to terrorize people with death threats. Please take care of yourself. I would say getting lost in a novel would be a pleasant out, escape from the harsh stress of life.

[CosmicRose]

This really has nothing to do with the right to bear arms, but rather a crazy person who is giving death threats. This has absolutely nothing to do with politics. Sounds like an issue for the police. For example, just because it is legal to own a knife, doesn't mean a person can make death threats with a knife. Two completely different subjects.