After seeing this post by John Aravosis on AmericaBlog, I was incensed and concerned at the same time. Here is the comment on O'Reilly's blog that crossed the line:
If Hillary wins, I will be respectful of our leader. If you could read my thoughts, I would be on the SS [Secret Service] watch list.
So, I did what a responsible person should do when they see something like this on a blog. I called the Secret Service to report it. This comment isn't about politics or defaming Senator Clinton. It outright states a threat to her life. It is unacceptable.
The Secret Service, who does an amazing job protecting their subjects, were very professional. The first person I spoke to transferred me to another person. Initially, she dismissed my comments. But, when I read her the comment and suggested that the person could be easily identified, she took me much more seriously. She called back minutes later, asking me to talk to someone else. That agent took the information and said that he would refer it to their Internet team.
It is a completely different discussion to have when debating the appropriateness of offensive comments. This, however is not a part of that discussion. When the life of anyone is threatened in any part of our corner of the internet, we should take appropriate action.
Read Lane's Open Letter to Bill O'Reilly here.