Sharkhunters in the News
Re: Sharkhunters in the News
The Southern Poverty Law Center has more at http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/i ... hird-Reich
/Marcus
http://www.splcenter.org/get-informed/i ... hird-ReichWhen Americans plan their vacations to foreign lands, they may think of some tropical paradise like Fiji. Or how about taking in some European castles? Perhaps a look at the splendors of China’s Forbidden City? But there are other options if you want to go international. In particular, what about a 10-day tour of southern Germany that hits all of Adolf Hitler’s favorite spots, like the famous Eagle’s Nest built by the führer’s private secretary, Martin Bormann, for his 50th birthday?If a pro-Hitler itinerary like that is to your liking, then a Sharkhunters International tour is for you. The Hernando, Fla.-based outfit, which you can join for a fee in return for certain benefits, fetishizes the Nazis and U-boat history, taking its travelers to the hidden gems of the Third Reich.
[...]
Advertisements for Sharkhunters tours have run regularly in wildly pro-Nazi, anti-Semitic publications. Cooper has counted prominent neo-Nazis, leading anti-Semites, Holocaust deniers, foreign extremist leaders, and even unrepentant members of the Third Reich among his friends, associates and members. His advisory board includes a prominent former member of a leading American neo-Nazi group. He’s enjoyed a friendly dinner with neo-Nazi and former Klan leader David Duke, and spoken at a major Holocaust denial conference. Harry Cooper, the “nonpolitical” tour guide of Nazi Germany, even wears a ring emblazoned with a swastika.
/Marcus
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SemperFi62
- Member
- Posts: 3
- Joined: 21 Sep 2013, 21:52
Re: Sharkhunters in the News
I researched Sharkhunters a few years ago and it was not really an organization – it was basically just Harry Cooper, his wife and his daughter & his daughter was just part time. It was chartered in Florida as a FOR PROFIT corporation. At that time it was located in a trailer in Harry’s backyard. There was one other person listed if I remember correctly. Harry & his wife were the officers.
The advisory Board was a complete sham. I contacted some of them and found the following:
None of them knew or had ever met any of the others.
They never met as a group.
They were never consulted as a group.
They never provided any advice on Sharkhunter matters as a group.
In short the Advisory Board did not function as an advisory board. Their names simply make Sharkhunters look legitimate while most of the people themselves have almost nothing to do with Sharkhunters. The Advisory Board had no authority or control over Sharkhunters or Harry Cooper at all yet Harry frequently told newcomers to Sharkhunters that he couldn’t do this or had to do that because of an Advisory Board decision.
I suspect that many of the life memberships were simply given to these folks but I can’t prove it. In the case of one of the Advisory Board members I happened to know I was told he simply joined Sharkhunters as a normal member years ago and got an e-mail from Harry a few years ago asking if he would serve on the Advisory Board. Before he could even reply to the e-mail he got another one from Harry congratulating him for becoming an Advisory Board member. The last time I checked he had never met another active Advisory Board member nor had he ever been asked to make a decision on Sharkhunter matters as an Advisory Board member. His name on the Advisory Board list was apparently all Harry wanted.
In the case of Otto Kretschmer who was actually asked for his advice on occasion, Harry kept him listed on his Advisory Board on the Sharkhunters web site for long after he had died. When he was confronted with this he moved him to his past advisors list where he is still listed today. However Otto Kretschmer resigned from the Advisory Board in disgust on 5 July, 1998 and asked to have his name removed from the list of Advisory Board members.
To date I have come in contact with a number of former Sharkhunter members and not one of them had anything good to say about Sharkhunters or Harry Cooper.
The rag Harry calls the Sharkhunters KTB is basically a forum for Harry to rant about anything he dislikes. Anyone who challenges him or his statements is demonized in the KTB. You get Harry’s point of view and nothing else.
Many of the U-boat men he initially got to provide stories & information (for free) that he published in his KTB (not for free) will no longer have anything to do with him so he has switched to the SS and Russian submariners for new content. I expect he still publishes some of the old stories too of course.
Harry got to the U-boat men years ago when they were still being demonized by rehashed WWII propaganda and after years of Germany reeducating its population that everything that happened during WWII was evil etc. In short the U-boat men were “politically incorrect” even at home. He came across as a friend and they gave him their stories and signed photographs for free and he sold them for profit through Sharkhunters. Many of these elderly gentlemen were in my opinion simply duped. Harry also has a travel agency that specializes in tours of Germany (for a price of course) and Harry was able to get some of the U-boat men to ride on the bus and show up for a meal with his tours or even act as a tour guide for a portion of a tour.
His web site featured cheap mugs, mouse pads and video tapes of his tours as well as other cheap junk and bogus conspiracy theory books about Hitler escaping to Argentina etc. – all for profit.
All of this has provided Harry Cooper and his family a living and that is what Sharkhunters is all about as far as I can tell.
The claims of all the money he donates to the U-boat Archiv and the U-boat memorial in Germany are also suspect. Horst Bredow who founded and still runs the U-boot Archiv told me once that not only had Harry never given him a penny, when his tours come to the Archiv they don’t leave donations either.
If you want an example of delusions of grandeur and an ego that just won’t quit see what Harry wrote about himself in his bio at: http://pths57.com/bio_htm_pages/cooper_harry.htm.
Sharkhunters is not what it seems to be. Talk to former members before getting involved with it.
The advisory Board was a complete sham. I contacted some of them and found the following:
None of them knew or had ever met any of the others.
They never met as a group.
They were never consulted as a group.
They never provided any advice on Sharkhunter matters as a group.
In short the Advisory Board did not function as an advisory board. Their names simply make Sharkhunters look legitimate while most of the people themselves have almost nothing to do with Sharkhunters. The Advisory Board had no authority or control over Sharkhunters or Harry Cooper at all yet Harry frequently told newcomers to Sharkhunters that he couldn’t do this or had to do that because of an Advisory Board decision.
I suspect that many of the life memberships were simply given to these folks but I can’t prove it. In the case of one of the Advisory Board members I happened to know I was told he simply joined Sharkhunters as a normal member years ago and got an e-mail from Harry a few years ago asking if he would serve on the Advisory Board. Before he could even reply to the e-mail he got another one from Harry congratulating him for becoming an Advisory Board member. The last time I checked he had never met another active Advisory Board member nor had he ever been asked to make a decision on Sharkhunter matters as an Advisory Board member. His name on the Advisory Board list was apparently all Harry wanted.
In the case of Otto Kretschmer who was actually asked for his advice on occasion, Harry kept him listed on his Advisory Board on the Sharkhunters web site for long after he had died. When he was confronted with this he moved him to his past advisors list where he is still listed today. However Otto Kretschmer resigned from the Advisory Board in disgust on 5 July, 1998 and asked to have his name removed from the list of Advisory Board members.
To date I have come in contact with a number of former Sharkhunter members and not one of them had anything good to say about Sharkhunters or Harry Cooper.
The rag Harry calls the Sharkhunters KTB is basically a forum for Harry to rant about anything he dislikes. Anyone who challenges him or his statements is demonized in the KTB. You get Harry’s point of view and nothing else.
Many of the U-boat men he initially got to provide stories & information (for free) that he published in his KTB (not for free) will no longer have anything to do with him so he has switched to the SS and Russian submariners for new content. I expect he still publishes some of the old stories too of course.
Harry got to the U-boat men years ago when they were still being demonized by rehashed WWII propaganda and after years of Germany reeducating its population that everything that happened during WWII was evil etc. In short the U-boat men were “politically incorrect” even at home. He came across as a friend and they gave him their stories and signed photographs for free and he sold them for profit through Sharkhunters. Many of these elderly gentlemen were in my opinion simply duped. Harry also has a travel agency that specializes in tours of Germany (for a price of course) and Harry was able to get some of the U-boat men to ride on the bus and show up for a meal with his tours or even act as a tour guide for a portion of a tour.
His web site featured cheap mugs, mouse pads and video tapes of his tours as well as other cheap junk and bogus conspiracy theory books about Hitler escaping to Argentina etc. – all for profit.
All of this has provided Harry Cooper and his family a living and that is what Sharkhunters is all about as far as I can tell.
The claims of all the money he donates to the U-boat Archiv and the U-boat memorial in Germany are also suspect. Horst Bredow who founded and still runs the U-boot Archiv told me once that not only had Harry never given him a penny, when his tours come to the Archiv they don’t leave donations either.
If you want an example of delusions of grandeur and an ego that just won’t quit see what Harry wrote about himself in his bio at: http://pths57.com/bio_htm_pages/cooper_harry.htm.
Sharkhunters is not what it seems to be. Talk to former members before getting involved with it.
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Thomas Craig
- Member
- Posts: 122
- Joined: 07 Apr 2013, 16:17
Re: Sharkhunters in the News
Harry Cooper and Sharkhunters are the biggest piece of shit org that I have ever encountered. As previously noted, if you challenge them you are demonized in his rag. He will even send you e-mail after e-mail egging you on for more "fodder" to use in his shit website. I was involved with them years ago and couldn't get away fast enough once I knew what that scumbag was all about. Please excuse me for saying this but....he is a cheap ass "you know what" looking to profit off German veterans. I would love nothing more than to punch him in the face.
He would actually send me these e-mails where we would argue back and forth...He was always right and you were always wrong.
Stay away!!
Quite possibly the worst person I have ever met....ever.
He would actually send me these e-mails where we would argue back and forth...He was always right and you were always wrong.
Stay away!!
Quite possibly the worst person I have ever met....ever.
Torpedo Los!
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JTG
- Member
- Posts: 840
- Joined: 20 Mar 2006, 22:10
- Location: R.N. La Mare, Jersey, British Channel Islands
Re: Sharkhunters in the News
Big Ego, little dick?
Re: Sharkhunters in the News
harry cooper is for sure what you say, here but I talked with him ones and he was very nice, i have read 2 of his non submarine books ,nothing specific and i cant recommend ,but they have some information, it seems to me that he has a lot of knowledge of some little known things of the war, its petty he doesn't really share it, he could make money writing a real good book thanks