Laake warned in 1939 that war could reach Norway, but continued waiting for political orders rather than pressing openly for action. He assumed the government possessed better intelligence than he did. Fleischer assessed the information he had and assumed ministers would tell him anything further they knew. These different assumptions divided officers willing to accept government direction from those who pressed to exercise their own professional judgment. Laake deserves part of the blame in this assessment, but the armed forces had already suffered years of cuts and missed investment opportunities.
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Laake and Fleischer made different assumptions about government intelligence
Laake waited for ministers he assumed were better informed, while Fleischer treated the information available to him as a basis for professional action.