When Is Equality Not Equality?

At a recent appearance in Toronto, famed British adman Neil French made waves a mari usque ad mare when he let the women in his industry know what he really thought: “You can’t be a great creative director and have a baby and keep spending time off every time your kids are ill. You can’t do the job.” Mr. French seemed sourly amused by the storm that greeted his remarks in our quiet dominion, and suggested that there might be something peculiarly Canadian in the outcry. “When it all pans out,” French prophesied, “people will realize this is just a bloke making fun of Canadians—which should be a national sport.” (In the meantime, French has flown home from this hostile climate but has had to resign his executive post amid the flurry of controversy. Is a “Don’t mess with Canada” bumper sticker in the works?)

Mr. French is right that his remarks may have received undue attention in the politically correct Canadian media, but he should not imagine that the national...