By: Guest ContributorMar. 8th, 2011more from Guest Contributor

Just when you thought that Ted Nugent had the title of craziest right wing celebrity all locked up, along comes Chuck Norris with his public schools are nothing more than progressive indoctrination camps conspiracy theory. Norris wrote, “What happens when the political and public educational pendulum swings from concern for the tyranny of sectarianism in Jefferson’s day to secularism in ours? What happens when U.S. public schools become progressive indoctrination camps?”

After a list of “real life headlines” many featuring Muslims, and Christians, and religion in our public schools, Norris posed a series of questions in his Town Hall column, “But what should happen 200 years later when our public schools and universities avoid the testing of truths? Or suppress alternative opinions because they are unpopular or politically incorrect? Or no longer tolerate opinions now considered errors or obsolete by the elite? What happens when socio-political agendas or scientific paradigms dominate academic views to the exclusion of a minority’s even being mentioned?”

Then he claimed that public schools are going to become progressive indoctrination camps, “What happens when the political and public educational pendulum swings from concern for the tyranny of sectarianism in Jefferson’s day to secularism in ours? What happens when U.S. public schools become progressive indoctrination camps?”

Norris then claimed that progressives spread their platform by recruiting progressives to teach, “One of the primary ways these educative platforms are spread is by recruiting and retaining faculty members who reflect and teach them.” (See, it is all a giant conspiracy).

No good conspiracy theorist article is worth its salt unless it contains some blatant misinformation, “This is why it is no surprise that the two largest teachers unions, the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers, are the largest campaign contributors in the nation (giving more than the Teamsters, the National Rifle Association or any other organization) and that 90 percent of their contributions fund Democratic candidates. So do you think such funding is going to balance traditional and conservative values with liberal ones in public schools?”

He concluded with this gem, “Is this present restrictive and one-sided educational environment that which Thomas Jefferson and other Founders intended for the future generations of America? Absolutely not! Rather than encourage freethinking, the U.S. academic system has turned Jefferson’s plans for open education into our culture’s system of indoctrination.”

I have got to say that I am impressed with Mr. Norris’ ability to distance himself from reality. It is a special skill. The truth, as Rachel Maddow pointed out, is that 7 of the top 10 political donors are conservative organizations who donate to Republicans. Chuck Norris didn’t actually have any evidence that there is a progressive conspiracy or that kids are being indoctrinated in public schools.

The fact is that age, demographic, ethnicity, gender, family are all factors that studies have found to influence voting behavior. It has never been demonstrated that anything beyond educational level can influence voter behavior. Chuck Norris’ conspiracy theory has no facts to back it up, so it is the wild ramblings of a right wing culture warrior who has been into a state of paranoia and delusion.

There are no progressive indoctrination camps. If there were progressive indoctrination camps, Democrats would never lose an election, and no one would watch Fox News. The real question is why is Chuck Norris opposed to students getting an education? Norris apparently doesn’t understand is that what he is proposing is the turning of the public education system into conservative indoctrination camps. The conspiracy theory is crazy, but there is a dangerous goal behind it.

Beyond the conspiracy theories lurk visions of an American Christian theocracy. The real objective here is not only to destroy the left, but fundamentally transform America by destroying the separation of church and state.

Chuck Norris may not know better, but he is a willing pawn in their battle to turn our government into an instrument of God.