School's out

So Ruth Kelly is sending her kid to a private school. Is this a big deal? Perhaps not in real life, but it's very important to the newspapers. Because - and obviously you don't need me to spell it out, but I will anyway - it says state schools are shit, they'll do for you plebs, but they're not going to help my dyslexic son.

Now, I'm not dyslexic, don't know anyone with a dyslexic child, but I know I would want the best for my child. As Clair says on http://theurbanwoo.blogspot.com, everyone criticizes the parents of children with special needs if they do something out of the ordinary, usually those who have no experience of what it's like having special needs children.

I have a friend with a young daughter who as a genetic disease so rare, only nine other people in the UK have it. In fact it was so rare, it was only after Googling the various symptoms then demanding tests and meetings with doctors that it was actually diagnosed, as no one had really heard about it.

Obvioulsy, they care about her and want the best for her. So it's clear Ruth Kelly cares about her child, but by bypassing state schools, it's almost an admission that she couldn't care less about the children of Britain, so why should she expect people to care about hers?

So in a convoluted way, what I'm trying to say is, I can see both sides, but I'm not happy about it.