I come from German heritage, among other things.

Once when I was young, about 7- or 8-years-old, I made a comment in my mom’s presence about my ancestors being Nazis. I had watched a lot of documentaries and read about World War II, but I really didn’t know what a Nazi was.

My mother promptly straightened me out. She said:

1). My ancestors were in the United States long before there ever were Nazis, and;

2) Nazis were horrible, murderous people.

She was offended at the idea that her relatives were anything like the Nazis. It was a lesson I have never forgotten. There are some political figures and other prominent people in American today who could stand to have a talk with my mom.

The election season is upon us, and with it comes the inevitable onslaught of negative campaign ads. A popular dirty campaign strategy, done mostly for shock value, is comparing one’s opponent with Hitler. By making these outrageous comparisons, politicians are trivializing one of the worst atrocities the world has ever seen, and desensitizing the American people to the horror of the Holocaust.

In Henry County, Va., Ken Barnett, a candidate for county sheriff, ran a TV ad that showed a picture of his opponent, Frank Cassell, next to a picture of Adolf Hitler and called Cassell’s deputies, “goose-stepping Gestapo.” The ad also featured a scene from Schindler’s List in which a concentration camp commander shoots a Jewish prisoner in the head for no reason.

Barnett’s comparison was based on the fact that Cassell had banned two reporters from the TV station Barnett works for from covering a private fund raising event. One of Hitler’s methods of control, Barnett said, was controlling the media.

As a journalist, I’m offended by Cassell banning the reporters from his event. But he certainly hasn’t done anything to deserve being equated with Hitler, and Barnett’s comparison is outrageous.

This is not an isolated event. In Virginia alone, there have been three candidates for the State Legislature this year who have used Nazi themes to attack opponents. The state superintendent of education in Idaho, Anne Fox, said the difficulties she encountered in her first week in office were like Anne Frank’s persecution by the Nazis.

I don’t know what kind of problems Fox had, but it’s probably safe to say that no one was trying to hunt her down and drag her off to a concentration camp.

Two Democratic Representatives from New York, Charles Rangel and Major Owens, said the social programs in the Contract With America would treat minorities like the Jews were treated by the Nazis. Owens even said the Republicans are “worse than Hitler.”

I don’t like the Contract With America, either, but it doesn’t compare with Nazism, and I can’t think of one Republican who deserves to be equated to Hitler.

This isn’t limited to liberals calling conservatives Nazis. In this time of conflict between the two political parties, it’s refreshing to know that there is at least one thing that is bipartisan…stupidity.

The National Rifle Association has circulated a letter to members charging that Federal law enforcement agents are, “jack-booted government thugs.” The organization is also well-known for challenging gun control legislation by saying that one of the first things Hitler did when he came to power was take away people’s guns.

Pro-life groups have also been known for comparing abortions to the Holocaust.

Of course, one of the most recent and famous incidents of this kind occurred during closing arguments for the murder trial of that football player. What was his name? I just can’t seem to remember, I haven’t heard anything about him in the news lately.

Anyway, defense attorney Johnny Cochran compared former LAPD detective Mark Furhman with Hitler.

I think we can all agree that Furhman is a racist and a disgrace to police officers everywhere, but he isn’t even in the same ballpark with Hitler. It isn’t the same league. It isn’t even the same sport.

No matter what your political ideologies are, no matter how much you dislike one party or the other, there is no possible way anything they have done can be compared with the horror Hitler and his Nazi party inflicted on millions of innocent people. To do so is a disgrace to the memory of the Nazis’ victims.

There are other ways to campaign. There are ways to make a point about something other than shocking people by making outrageous comparisons. Everyone needs to learn the lesson I learned at a young age. The Holocaust was one of the worst atrocities ever, and no political squabble can be compared to it.

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Steven Martens is a junior in journalism mass communication from Cedar Rapids.