Godwin bitchslaps Jean Lapierre

Attention - Message to the Liberal Party of Canada: Stop letting Jean Lapierre talk. Right NOW.

It seems that Calgary Grit's recommendation to the Bloc that they keep a microphone in front of Jean Lapierre at all times was a good one (did anyone expect otherwise?)

Jean Lapierre was quite happy to break Godwin's law today, which states that anyone who makes a hyperbolic reference to Hitler or the Nazis immediately loses the debate. In response to Gilles Duceppe's stated desire to make the Liberals "disappear" from the province of Quebec, Lapierre stated, "That kind of language, where you say you want to make your opponents disappear, there's a little bit of a Nazi tone in that."

Do I even need to elaborate on how incredibly stupid this was? I hope not.

To add more embarassment, Gilles Duceppe - already the victim of a Nazi comparison - actually publicly apologized for the tone of his "disappear" remarks, clarifying that he only meant that he wanted as many people to vote for the Bloc as possible. As if any reasonable person would think anything else! Gilles Duceppe is not a Nazi. There is no conceivable way to make him look like a Nazi (without a photoshop editor, that is). Jean Lapierre's idiocy was on full display for everyone to see.

Honestly, I hope he loses. If the Bloc has to win one more seat, I hope it's his, simply for that unabashedly moronic statement. He deserves to lose for that one. And frankly, the Liberal Party would be much better off without him in the House. There is no place in the Canadian House of Commons for people who would say such reprehensible things about decent people.

I disagree with Gilles Duceppe on a great many issues, but he is a man, who cares passionately for democracy and freedom, and who I know would stand against any policy which could be labelled "Nazi". And the fact his reaction to being called a Nazi was actually to apologize just goes to show how profoundly decent a man he is. He's probably been called worse things by better people, to coin a memorable phrase, but still, it's not the reaction I would have had, and I have to give mad kudos to M. Duceppe for his outstanding display of civility and humility.

And as for how to deal with M. Lapierre... my recommendation has already been made. Stop letting him speak. Keep him as quiet as Cheryl Gallant was towards the end of the 2004 campaign. And for the love of god, if he has to be in cabinet again, don't make him the Quebec lieutenant. Give that position to someone who deserves it, like Stephane Dion.

This is disappointing. I had thought that the first outrageous statement of the campaign would have been made by a Tory.