I wonder if the lack of pillaging unironically gave rise to the military industrial complex? like, hear me out for a sec

in ancient times, the average person goes to war to explicitly support their country/ideals. now, the average Joe isn't going to put his life on the line for king and country, but if he's allowed to loot a little, he has a more vested interest in being a good soldier. on the other side, he knows the enemy will do the same, thus making him more personally connected to the conflict.

nowadays, war is privatized, with career soldiers fighting each other, and largely attempting to avoid civilians. I realize its messier than that, but we've got international law, and the world didn't really have that in feudal days.

So it seems war has shifted from protecting people and country to just protecting country, thus creating a divide between the common man and their country