New Type of War? New Type of Enemy?

My half-breed ass. This is something that gets trotted out time after time in the history of human conflicts. Every single time we go to war it seems there's somebody who wants to cite "a new type of war" to justify the committing of atrocity and crimes. For those who really want to call this war in Afghanistan and Iraq something new or something different I give you - - -

Alexander the Great addressing his troops on the approach to Afghanistan from History of Alexander by Quintus Curtius

Do you believe that so many nations accustomed to the name and rule of another, united with us by neither religion, no customs, no community of language, have been subdued in the same battle in which they were overcome? It is by your arms alone that they are restrained, not by their dispositions, and those who fear us when we are present, in our absence, be enemies. We are dealing with savage beasts, which lapse of time only can tame, when they are caught and caged, because their own nature cannot tame them. . .Accordingly, we must either give up what we have taken, or we must seize what we do not yet hold.

New? Nope. Different? Not much. Sounds pretty much like the same old imperial bullshit to me. But then, I am a documented attitude case.

crossposted at 3B's