GDG- Re: BMI

[Basecat1 at aol.com]

In a message dated 10/30/2006 6:39:20 PM Eastern Standard Time,  
gettysburg-request at arthes.com writes:

Fishel's  book is by no means a light read.  It's the kind of work where you  
really need to pay attention as you go along.  But the time and  effort 
involved is well worth reading one of the most seminal books on the  AOP 
(despite the title, its focus is heavily on that army) to come out in  recent 
years.  In my opinion, it does not go too far to say that  anyone who has not 
read Fishel is at a serious disadvantage in  understanding the Gettysburg 
Campaign.

It is interesting, though,  how the intelligence gathered and, more 
importantly, so accurately  evaluated, by the BMI still seems to have such 
limited influence on the  mindset within much of the senior command of the 
AOP that the ANV was so  much larger than it actually was.  Almost as if the 
AOP's "corporate  culture" was predisposed to act on the basis it was 
outnumbered, even  when, objectively, it should have known better.

Jim  Cameron
 
Jim,
 
I could not agree more, and know I read the Fishel book at the wrong time,  
and will probably have to read it again.  I had just gotten back into the  
study of the Civil War when the book came out, and his book was one of the first  
I plundered through.
 
The notes at the back of the book are very thorough, and IMHO, could have  
been made into a separate book itself.  While the writing is very dry, and  the 
book can be a tough thing to wade through, Fishel supplies the reader with a  
vast amount of information on a subject that has rarely been looked at. 
 
It really is a fascinating look at how the Union command in the East got  
their information on the Southern army, or misinformation they got before Sharpe  
became more involved.
 
That said, when I finished reading it the first time, I danced a jig of  
celebration, as I got through it eventually.:)
 
Regards from the Garden State,
 
Steve Basic