Law Firm vs. Public Interest = Prestige vs. Scholarship?

I literally spent the last 40 minutes (or so) reading blog after blog (I read 14 in total) of people who have substantial things to say about the "law firm exodus."

All this literature and outspoken thoughts has me (someone starting law school in the fall) thinking: so should one choose a school based on prestige (destined to be locked in golden handcuffs) or take the money to open up options?

Neal, from Anna Ivey's blog, correctly points out that many practicing lawyers give mixed reviews when confronted with this question: some say, "Law school loans eventually dwindle away! In your generation, you will be billing $1000 an hour, what's the worry?"; other's say, "Those loans really can bite you in the a**. Prestige is overplayed. In the end it's all about how much money you can take home."

It's all so very interesting.

BTW, the title of this blog was intentionally made bipolar to catch the reader's eye. Prestige =/= Law Firm & Scholarship ($$$) =/= Public Interest. In fact, many people I know are able to garner both prestige and money - lucky, lucky people~