John Roderick, the self-titled “Bean Dad” who is also a musician, shared a lengthy story last weekend on Twitter about how he refused to help his daughter use a can opener to pry open a can of beans. According to him, it took his daughter six hours. Between bouts of exhaustion, hunger, and frustration, she prevailed. After he told his story, though, some folks were outraged — at least one person accused him of child abuse. Roderick deactivated his Twitter account and apologized in shame. Was Roderick an abusive, exhibitionist parent exploiting his daughter or somewhere in between?

A close read of the tweets shows Roderick’s 9-year-old-daughter asked him if he could open a can of beans because she was hungry. After he realizes she doesn’t know how to use the can opener, the two proceed down an apparently six-hour journey to learn the mechanics of a can opener and perseverance. In the end, she prevails and eats the beans (in addition, I hope, to something else).