…except that that web page is misspelling it. It’s “Godwin’s Law”.
And it’s also wrong–it wasn’t originated by a “Professor Goodwin” in 1981, it was originated by a “Mike Godwin” in 1990.
http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/2.10/godwin.if.html
http://en2.wikipedia.org/wiki/Godwin’s_Law
I think an important part of the catching-people-on-fire issue in elevators is the enclosed nature of the space. If I’m walking down a hallway and someone’s carelessly-handled cigarette lights my (waist-length and styling-product-free) hair aflame, I have a fair amount of room to drop and roll, or get help, or rush to a bathroom, and people can easily get out of my way.
If someone’s cig lights my hair on fire in an elevator, especially a crowded one, options are more limited. I and those around me would be in a smallish box with an open flame, filling with smoke, little room to maneuver in order to put out the flames, and nobody can get away until the elevator stops at a floor. There are also many people who, when suddenly presented with that kind of situation, will panic, and that makes things even worse.