"To secure peace is to prepare for war." - Carl von Clausewitz

Let's talk about War. Morbid no doubt but equally indispensable for progress, for evolution, for the relentless and inconsiderate pursuit of improvement. And to begin dissecting all things gargantuan in concept, it is most apt to tear everything down with a tinge of irony. Is war truly an inescapable tool utilized to preserve peace, and no more?

If it is true our claim that we train to fight only so that we may never fight, we may very well be chasing our tails in circles. For with such a defensive and noble argument, it may well be impossible to isolate the perpetrator of war should everyone grapple with such a stance. And to give the benefit of doubt to all parties involves, it simply translates to yet another instance of circular logic, a dilemma with no answer, a question of the chicken and the egg from another perspective.

And still it is true. But I would assert that such is a poor characterisation of war, barely encapsulating the elements of chaos and the yearn for excellence.

For victory.

Above all, regardless of reasons pure or insane, humble or incorrigible, war is staged for success and demands the strength and will to triumph. For the matter, no sane individual goes to war for a casual spar with the enemy; they go in hard, they go in furious, and they go in with the intention of coming back alive, burning with the euphoria of victory. No army would devote the amount of resources, material and intangible, for any reason other than victory; for there is no cause as of sheer worthiness as winning.

Victory is a symbol of strength and bears the fruits of one's unmeasured labour. It is a sign of accomplishment and represents all that men hungers after. And in the decisive arena of war, victory is measured like no other. It is a win for the country, for the men and women who stand tall and proud of their identity, for the blood that don't have to run because of the other men you have caused to bleed. And most of all, victory is personal. It is an individual taste of triumph, of attaining your vision, of securing peace.

And so whatever may be the reason we fight, if we have to one day, we will charge on the battlefield knowing that we lust for victory and victory no less. And we owe this not just to the country nor its people, it is a personal testament to our values and purpose that we have to carve out for ourselves.

So it may be that amidst the fog of war we have lost sight of ethics and morality concepts that have defined the good of men, but it must never be that we lose sight of victory. Because at the end of it all, you would have gained a certain clarity behind the shattered glass that was the untainted innocence of a man who has yet to shed blood.

It is a war we fight everyday, internally and without.

And it is a war we need to secure peace with.

To gain victory.