There need to be higher penalties for stupidity.

Monday, October 26, 2009

You may recall that Erie County executive Chris Collins is currently the state GOP chair's hand-picked choice to be the Republican candidate for governor next year. As such, you would think that the state GOP would be teaching their new golden boy a few things about learning to filter the things that come out of his mouth, such as in the case of a "joke" he made at the Erie County GOP's fall fundraiser.

Collins referenced famed French seer Nostradamus' prediction that there would be three anti-Christs before the Apocalypse.

He said it's generally accepted the first was Napoleon and the second Hitler.

He said he was "pretty sure" the third is [Assembly Speaker Sheldon] Silver, a Manhattan Democrat, two attendees at the Erie County GOP's annual fall fund-raiser at the Adam's Mark Hotel said.

Now look, I have no particular love for Sheldon Silver, and neither do most of New York's pro-reform grassroots activists, because Silver is among other things one of the leading advocates for the idea that New York State's government is just fine the way it is. Quite the opposite in fact, Silver is considered one of the biggest enemies to making New York State government more open to the public and making the budget less centralized under the control of the "big three," the Governor, Speaker, and Senate Majority Leader. So I don't say this out of any remote form of affection or loyalty.

But seriously--calling the Jewish leader of the NY Assembly "the Anti-Christ" and equating him to Hitler?

Republicans get a bad reputation for offensive humor--often deservingly--but apparently the New York Republican Party still has quite a large number of decent human beings around, because Collins' "joke" bombed. The New York Daily News cited one WNY Republican as saying "No one clapped. No one cheered. No one laughed... I know I didn't. I thought it was a little harsh to be calling someone an anti-Christ."

The Republican who commented to the Buffalo News put it more bluntly: "It was staggering... It took my breath away. You just don't say something like that."

The NYDN also quoted an Erie County Democrat as adding that "The statewide media can expect to see a lot more of these types of foot-in-mouth moments... He's an extremist who doesn't think before he speaks."

The quotes may be anonymous, but plaudits to the Republicans who socked Collins over his comment. He deserved it. With luck maybe some party elders will take him out to the woodshed, and choose somebody with a better sense of decorum to represent them next year.