The man now feels "sh*tty for bringing" his brother "into a fight he didn't want" -- but thousands of people across the globe felt otherwise
A steamfitter has taken to the internet after his sister-in-law told her children he was an example of why they needed to go to college, otherwise they'd end up like him.
It all went down at a family barbecue the man was hosting to announce he was going to be a father.
But things took a turn when his sister-in-law tried to use him as a case study for how not to live your life.
His brutal response, revealing a secret about her husband (his brother), stunned his SIL but left him wondering if he took things too far.
While the highly entertaining post is impossible to verify considering the anonymous platform it was shared to, the Reddit community took the tale at face value and upvoted it thousands of times.
See for yourself!
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View StoryAITA for telling my sister-in-law how much my brother owes me when she tried to tell my nephews that I was an example of why they should stay in school?
"I'm a steamfitter and I work a lot of overtime. I work a lot of overtime because I hate working. So I usually work like a mad man for seven months of the year and take the other five off.
"My brother is a teacher and the first person in our family to graduate from university. I have always been proud of him and he is actually pretty awesome. He married another teacher and they have two boys. His wife comes from a family of educated people. I think most of her relatives are college educated.
"My wife and I are expecting our first child and we had my parents and my brother's family over so we could announce it. I spent the day getting my smoker going early and we set up for what I thought was going to be a nice visit and announcement.
"Full disclosure, my wife and I currently live in a manufactured home (mobile home). We keep it tidy and it has city water and power.
"I'm not sure why but my sister-in-law decided that before dinner was the perfect time to tell her children that they needed to stay in school if they didn't want to end up like me and my wife.
"I saw red and was about to let her have it but my mom and brother told her that she was being rude and that she needed to apologize. She didn't. She doubled down and said that we were doing okay for the two of us but what if we wanted a child. She just didn't want her kids to end up like us.
"I told my brother he needed to tell her to shut up or they needed to leave. She said that she was just thinking about our future and our children's future.
"I told her then that my kids would probably be okay as soon as her husband paid me back for his education that I paid for. My brother has no student loans because I paid for his education. I told her that my current house wasn't great but that the construction across the road was our new house we were having built since my wife and I owned the quarter section of land our trailer is on. I then told her that since I make more money than her and my brother combined while only working a little over half a year I think we will be okay.
"I would not actually call in the loan to my brother. I know that they are living just within their means and do not have the money to pay me back.
"She got embarrassed and they left. I told my parents about the baby and we had a shit tonne of left overs since four people left.
"My parents, my wife, and my brother all said that I didn't need to lose my cool with her and that she meant well. My mom said that I was vulgar to point out how much money I make. I don't know. I hated myself for pointing out that my brother is poor compared to me but I didn't start the conversation."
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View StoryA Few Answered Questions and How Redditors Reacted
OP went on to explain that his sister-in-law "did not know" he had paid for his brother's education, or that he was "subsidizing" their lives.
He also clarified, "I did not mind putting her in her place. I hated hurting my brother."
Overwhelmingly the Reddit community voted NTA.
"She wanted to play the 'higher education' game and lost," One commenter pointed out. "I don't understand why some college educated people feel they are superior to everybody else. Some people would fall on their back sides if they knew how much some of these jobs pay. I know a guy who teaches at university and can't afford jack. I guess your only fault was that you could have chosen the higher road, but I don't fault you for going your route. Some people need to be 'educated.'"
While another simply observed (and garnered 12K upvotes): "NTA She should not denigrate what you do for a living. Your brother should have told her that he owed you money."
"She decided to be incredibly rude and did so with the intention of being spiteful," a Redditor noted. "For her and your brother being 'educated' they're struggling and she knows it. She punched down to make herself feel better, and it backfired spectacularly. Ask your brother and parents why she's allowed to insult and demean you in your own home, in front of family, but presenting her with the truth is an issue?"
What do you think?