| You misunderstood me. Whom do you consider a truly professional soldier?
In my view it's a marine, a SEAL, or another military member of a modern state.
Heck even a Pakistan army soldier is a professional soldier. So what drives these professional soldiers is not the paycheck, its the idea of patriotism or that they are upholding some set of values for their country, or the idea that they are protecting their country.
That is what allows them to hang in there when it goes well beyond limits of human endurance. Refer the marine campaign of Iwo Jima 'http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Iwo_Jima',
where soldiers went for 3-4 months without adequate food, rest or even barely human conditions against a fanatical enemy.
Or for that matter any campaign during the world war. Or any other war worth something for the parties involved. And my point is you can't get such kind of men or women to fight for money as mercenaries. And if I'm paying for mercenaries I want people like the ones who fought Iwo Jima. So, if you look at the recruiting for the private armies most of them are ex-soldiers of a nation-state's army. After a while some guys come to view it as any other profession. And then probably start working for a private army. But even then I'd be surprised if private armies would be able to hold up their own against national armies or even if their members expect to. |