What does this mean "I am nuking you into the dark ages "

[bubblysouffle]

I live in a country where English is used but children's case workers may not necessarily understand the English nuances and history of the dark ages.

Ex partner is English, and sent me message:

" Expect a nuclear response" and " I am nuking you into the dark ages " .

What does this mean to an English speaking person ? nuclear ? nuking...dark ages....

I need to show the mumsnet english speakers interpretation.

Thank you for your help.

I interpret that as

"Expect a nuclear response"
I intend to react in the most extreme and damaging way possible

"I am nuking you into the dark ages"
I will cause so much damage to you/your life that it'll be like turning a modern civilization into a mediaeval village

As above.

Sounds like he’s trying to threaten you.

Wow lovely ex, it's a threat.

They're threats OP.

Yes, I know they are threats.
Help me out. I need everyone to explain how serious the threat is and what exactly it means. . So that I can show this to the authorities how English people interpret it. I know what it means but they need to see it is not just my interpretation. He has taken my kids and won't return them, and refused to let them go school, and refused to let me speak to them. He threatens me this if I try to get back my kids.

He is threatening you with a massively disproportionate response to whatever he thinks you did or said. It might be violence. It might be a lawsuit.

If you think he is capable of violence, report this to the police in whatever county or city where he lives, and watch your back.

If you have children and are involved in co parenting or a dispute about custody or access, he is probably threatening to remove the children from you.

What country are you in and who has main custody of the children? I'd be calling the police if he won't return them .

How are the police not investigating a child kidnapping?? Someone TOOK your children, won't let you see or speak to them..and you are quite calm and collected?

It means he's going to throw everything at it. Going nuclear is the biggest or worst possible option. The 'dark ages' is pre civilization. So it's like nuking you into oblivion. Destroying everything.

I fear he is threatening your DC safety if you try to get them back from him. I’d be extremely worried.

Expect a nuclear response to what?

I’m guessing ex is children’s parents and if he has PR there isn’t anything police can do. Solicitor and legal action, CAO etc.

That he’s possibly going to do something horrifically extreme. I would be very worried for your safety and possibly your children's.

expect a nuclear response if I "go near my children"

I am not calm and collected about him taking my kids. I am devastated. The police say it is a custody issue and won't do anything. I have been to the police station 3 times already.

They said I have to go through court, and I am .

What country are you in? Are you both in the same country now? How long since he took the children? How long have they been out of school? Is there social services who could address the school issue?
Have you spoken to a solicitor yet re custody?
Or is your immediate concern the threatening language?

I have a lawyer. Already been to police x 3.

MY focus on this thread is what ex said. So I can show the authorities this is what English speakers interpret it to be . Not everyone understands what the DARK AGES MEAN because it is a European ? history.

Please just limit to explaining what it means. Thank you .

The dark ages is medieval. It's western European history. You can find more info here en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dark_Ages_(historiography)

" Expect a nuclear response" and " I am nuking you into the dark ages " .

It's a threat against you and your children.
He is threatening a "massive response", possibly legal, physical and emotionally, in revenge, if you try to take your children back.

I would take this threat seriously and report this to the authorities.
Kidnap and withholding children from their right to an education, both infringe on the rights of the children and alienated parent.

"Nuking you back to the dark ages" - infers stripping you of everything and devastating your life as you know it, and leaving you with nothing.

Don't underestimate what a deranged, unstable person can do.

He's threatening to metaphorically, put a bomb. under you and blast you so far that you travel back in time.

Yes. Please keep adding comments. I need to be taken seriously by the authorities that this is a serious threat.

I think nuking, nuclear and dark ages are understood in most countries. I'm also not sure that showing the authorities a mn thread will help much. Does your solicitor understand the terms and can he explain?

Where are you in the world? That won't be identifying information.

He is threatening to do you so much damage that you can never, ever recover from it.

The phrase has been used about Putin bombing cities in Ukraine back to the dark ages (Dark Ages meaning Medieval times, before there was running water, electricity, cars - people travelled by donkey and lived in huts). It means total and utter devastation. Think of the images of Hiroshima after the nuclear bomb.

If he had any violent tendencies I'd be worried he was going to put me in hospital or try to kill me. Burn my home. Cut brake cables on my car. Pay someone to throw acid on me aka Billie Piper's ex.

If he prefers emotional/psychological abuse, then I'd be worried he would do something to severely harm my character to the point it jeopardises my work and/or ability to be social. So making false claims of child sexual and or physical abuse about me to the police. Or email my boss with extreme lies about me - I'd been stealing from work, something made up sexually about me. Or email everybody I know with something similar. Tell people I have a severe mental illness, or imply that I do. Or that I'm a compulsive liar. The point being he's out to destroy in a way that there's never, ever a real way back from. Total destruction of your life is what the threat is.

In both cases I'd be afraid he would harm my children.

The nuclear option is the bomb to end all bombs. Destroy civilisation. Saying it to a person is the threat to end all threats. You cannot actually make a bigger threat than that. And it wasn't a mistake because he repeated. It should be taken very seriously, because it is serious in the most awful way.

If this was me in the UK I'd go to the police about the two threats alone, because I would be very afraid. Ir, to protect myself and my children, I'd stay away from them to protect them.

In context with him taking the children, I would interpret his words as a threat to kill the children ("If I can't have them nobody will") and plunge you into the a dark grief that would last forever.