In this week of Holocaust memorials and tributes; this week when the UN is out there once more talking the talk, there is a terrifying reminder here at home of how easy it is to ignore genocide, even when it's right under your nose.

Or at least that's what some inane animal rights group would have you believe:

TORONTO – Public hearings into legislation to sharply restrict ownership of some dog breeds heard Monday from a critic who referred to a ban on pit bull terriers as "canine genocide."

Cathy Prothro, president of the American Staffordshire Terrier Club of Canada, told a legislative committee that the proposed law unfairly blames pit bulls for attacks against humans by all breeds of dogs.

Prothro also said there is "no scientific proof that genetics cause a breed of dog to be aggressive."

"For this type of racial profiling, it amounts to nothing more than canine ethnic cleansing," she told the committee on its first day of hearings.

No, really. She actually said "ethnic cleansing" when talking about vicious dogs - during Holocaust remembrance week. I'm sure she could have been at work that day, but perhaps decided to close the yoga studio so she could attend this hearing. Thankfully, her nonsense was balanced about by facts:

Monday's hearing also heard from a Toronto woman who described the injuries inflicted on her five-year-old daughter by a pit bull in 1994.

"The beast left a gaping hole just under the eye so deep you could see the little bones in her face," said Louise Ellis, whose daughter needed more than 300 stitches after the attack.

"The owner said it was friendly, and it was okay to pat it."

UPDATE: Looks like Angry in Toronto got to this story before I did, and spent a bit more time on it, too. Dude has lots of time on his hands, judging by the consitently well-thought-out and interesting posts he delivers. If you haven't read him before, now's a good time to start.