Hear hear rotorspeed.
Nigelh If I was to use your analogy of teaching your son to drive a car, I would compare apples with apples. IE, the equivalent of going IIMC (don't confuse IMC with your IFR) in your sons circumstances would be like asking him to drive in the pitch black with all the lights off and at relatively high speed (70+kts = 80mph).
I challenge anyone other than a very well trained and current expert to achieve that.
Flying IMC safely is a perishable skill. Don't practice regularly and you'll find you have to start almost from scratch the first time you try it after a long lay off.
Sir Korsky - aahh the pilot who knows when to say no. Of course we all have that choice don't we. Tell that to the wife of the deceased pilot who flew his boss into the ground during that private IMC departure from a field about 5 years ago. The boss didn't threaten him with the job did he? The Chelsea chairman crash in 1996.......not that easy in real life I'm afraid if you are either a corporate pilot, or, for that matter, an EMS pilot in the USA