Clinton's decision to send Chelsea to a private school is reasonable in itself. Considering the political circles in which the Clintons will be moving for the next four years, a posh private school like Sidwell Friends would be a good place for Chelsea to make contacts and to learn to adapt to her family's new lifestyle.

In addition, Washington is not the safest city in the world, and if its public schools are anything like New York's, a public figure like Chelsea might not be safe there.

Clinton demonstrates hypocrisy, however, when he supports the public school system, denying poor and middle-class parents access to the diversity of schools that the Clintons enjoy.

Yet privatization by itself is not the answer, since many poor parents could not afford private schools even in the absence of a public school tax. The solution is more complicated.

The government has a stake in ensuring the education of all its citizens, since an educated citizenry is the foundation of a good democracy. Yet the government has no business determining the content of that education. In addition, it is incapable of tailoring its services to its clients.

Instead of spending money on a school system, the government should provide education subsidies to poor people, a sort of national financial aid. Tax credits and vouchers are enough for many in the middle class, but are not sufficient for others.

In the terms of the story, this would mean giving the people money to go buy the right kind of shoes from private stores instead of issuing them all the same kind of shoe. At present, a government peddling one-size-fits-all education is like the prince making the rounds with the glass slipper, satisfying the lucky Cinderella who wears the right size but leaving everyone else sitting in the ashes.