I am writing in reference to the letter from Linda Sherwood that appeared Nov. 17. She has enlightened me on the life of fathers who walk away from their families and continue not to be a father but only to be a “uncle” or nothing at all.

I don’t know how Sherwood can pass such judgment. I do know that I, and many other men like me, have the same, if not more, parental responsibility than the “custodial parent” she refers to. The Department of Health and Human Services does more than its fair share of beating the non-custodial parent with child support and health insurance, which, in turn, leaves that parent barely able to afford to heat a home or drive to work, much less provide for a child or children.

If Sherwood wants to blame someone for the poverty level in the state of Maine, then how about the recipients of the child support (mothers of the children) who do not work?

The blame for the poverty level in the state of Maine should be spread evenly among deadbeat dads and lazy, child-support-hungry mothers in the state.

Shawn McFarland, Augusta