I confess I have spent all day on that site.
I've got mixed feelings about Mike Sparks though. He does have some pretty good ideas about some things but he's a little far fetched about others. He's also not helping himself, credibility wise, with his well known anti Marine Corps bias.
HE ALSO LIKES TO EMPHASIZE KEY THOUGHTS IN CAPITAL LETTERS AND IT LOOKS LIKE HE'S SHOUTING AT YOU IN PRINT!
I guess it's not so much what Sparks says but the way he says it that rubs some the wrong way.
The Ghost of General Gavin ......Speaks
Here is audio interview with General Gavin before his death. Most people do not know that he went on to become CEO of the consulting group Arthur D. Little in Cambridge,Massachusetts. Be prepared for an ear burning session as he pulls no punches. The link is listed below #509 Military Security Blankets.
http://www.library.ucsb.edu/speccoll/csdi/a8185.html
Mike Sparks appears to be pretty much a nut-case. Go to this link to read and enjoy:Originally Posted by Rifleman
http://63.99.108.76/forums/index.php?showtopic=19719
Don't laugh too hard
It's easy to dismiss Sparks as a nut case but that would be a huge mistake.
I think, and have told him at some length, that I strongly disagree with most of his ideas. I think his military thought is mostly wrong and possibly dangerous.
Now,
1. Mike Sparks is, IMO, actually two or even three people. I think "he" does amazon reviews under the name Sam Damon. I also have e-mails from him that appear to be written by different people. He does exist, I have spoken to him and know men who knew him in the USMC, but there are some others voices out there.
2. His out put is phenomenal. He has literally 100's of web pages across several sites. Some contain excellent historical information. As far as I can tell he works full time on his web sites, and even managed to buy a surplus CH-47 fuselage for some project. - he has resources, and capability.
3. His capacity to influence people is truly extraordinary. Look at the list of authors for "Air-Mech Strike". Some of these guys are smart, well respected men who agreed to work with Sparks. Some of the people on his forum are outstanding individuals and very knowledgeable, or experienced soldiers, and subject matter experts. He has convinced several companies to invest time and money in his projects. The Battle Box being one.
All in all, "we" may dismiss Sparks, but when "he" is sitting across the table from some Senator, or some staffer is writing briefs based on what 'former Marine Officer and Paratrooper, Mike Sparks' is telling them, then you have a cat of a whole different colour.
Infinity Journal "I don't care if this works in practice. I want to see it work in theory!"
- The job of the British Army out here is to kill or capture Communist Terrorists in Malaya.
- If we can double the ratio of kills per contact, we will soon put an end to the shooting in Malaya.
Sir Gerald Templer, foreword to the "Conduct of Anti-Terrorist Operations in Malaya," 1958 Edition
Brief comment...
Sparks stole whole pages from my old MOUT Homepage web site and published them as his own and sent long ranting e-mails to me that went unread after the first. Haven't heard from him in years and I am the better for it.
And practices like that make it pretty easy for him to "maintain" tons of web pages. Much easier when you 'borrow' your content.
"On the plains and mountains of the American West, the United States Army had once learned everything there was to learn about hit-and-run tactics and guerrilla warfare."
T.R. Fehrenbach This Kind of War
Hi Wilf, I think you may well be right in that he is more than one person. Also he picks and chooses the pieces of Gavin's writings that support what are I guess are his theories, while he overlooks some critical aspects of Gavin's thinking on the future of warfare.
Hi Dave, As a long time reader of the MOUT page before the creation of the SWJ/SWC I thought some of the material looked very familiar
I've never corresponded with Sparks but here's my take on him. I think he is one man but he does use various names. In addition to Mike Sparks he's been known to post under Sam Damon Jr., dynmicpara, and truthteller (truthseeker?). Those are the ones I know of.
It amazes me how he can go from what I'd consider good, reasonable ideas to utter lunacy.
He had an article about an advanced tactical parachute that I thought made sense. He's also advocated modern rifle grenades and pointed out that current models do not need a blank cartridge to fire them, they're shoot through or bullet trap styles. I don't see anything really weird about either of those proposals.
Then he starts ranting on about making the entire Army Air-Mech and disbanding the Marine Corps. He sees the M113A-whatever model number he's up to now, as the answer to almost any problem. He loves aircraft but hates the Osprey. One wonders if he would love the Osprey if it had been an Army project.
And anyone who doesn't agree with him is a NARCISSIST!, who has "LIGHTITIS!," and DOES NOT UNDERSTAND MODERN WAR!
I wonder if he's just mad, or if time will prove him a mad genius.
Last edited by Rifleman; 12-28-2007 at 06:39 PM.
"Pick up a rifle and you change instantly from a subject to a citizen." - Jeff Cooper
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