In a viral Reddit post, u/Specialist_Bake_1036, explained his mom fell pregnant with another man’s baby while married to his dad. Following the divorce, she went on to have four more kids with different men.

The original poster, 20, explained his step-siblings “hate” his dad for only taking care of him and not the rest of them while their mom was struggling.

It seems the young man isn’t the only one who thinks his dad “didn’t do anything wrong” as a family therapist told Newsweek, his father’s decision was “both a practical solution and a moral one.”

Sally Baker, the author of The Getting of Resilience From the Inside Out, told Newsweek it’s the half-siblings’ dads at fault. She describes their anger towards the OP’s dad as “misplaced and misdirected,” as the OP initially took to the internet to explain an argument he recently had with his step-sister, 18.

He wrote: “She came after me to argue and to have it out over my dad. She accused me of being a d*** for not being mad at dad. She then went on to tell me a story about [our] mom struggling to afford diapers and how dad made sure to send diapers that were just in my size instead of money so mom could buy them for both of us.

“I told her I didn’t see what my dad did as wrong because he was never her dad. She said he could have been but he rejected her in court. I told her again that to me, dad did nothing wrong.”

The Cost of Raising a Child

The U.S. Department of Agriculture worked out the cost of a child was $12,980 annually in a middle-income family where both parents earned a combined income in the range of $59,200-$107,400.

This isn’t likely to be the case for the OP as his parents were separated and he speaks about the hardship his step-siblings went through while he was “better-taken care of.”

During the argument, the OP’s sister said: “As her older brother I should be furious that he would be okay with her and the rest of our siblings going hungry, not having the right care, and that he could have stepped up but chose not to which should make me hate him.”

Baker explained his father did the “best in a difficult situation.”

She said: “His father behaved responsibly and fulfilled his financial and paternal obligations by paying maintenance; retaining regular contact, and buying things he needed. His decision to target his support to be of benefit to only you was both a practical solution and a moral one.

“He wanted to guarantee he was meeting his needs - the only child in the family who was his responsibility and his legal duty to support,” she said. “With his ex-partner’s family growing like topsy he would have struggled to support his half-siblings that were never his responsibility.”

What Do the Comments Say?

More than 900 people have commented on the post, which has received 5,800 upvotes since it was shared on December 8.

The top comment has racked up 10,800 upvotes, saying: “Absolutely NTA [not the a******]. Their anger is directed at your dad because they saw him providing for you. He is not obligated to spend a dime on your half-siblings. Where’s their dads? that’s where their anger needs to be directed to.”

“She wants money for an affair child. Why don’t his feelings count? Your sister and mom are the AH because they know why. I’m sure it hurt to not get things but, I doubt your sister remembers him buying you diapers. That’s her mom talking. NTA,” commented another.

“Their dads are skipping in the wind because a woman had 6 children and never figured out how use any form of birth control or self-restraint. That same woman has spent all of those kids’ lives blaming anyone but herself for her poor economic status and life choices It’s all those kids know,” commented another.

Newsweek reached out to u/Specialist_Bake_1036 for comment. We couldn’t verify the details of the case.

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