Response to "The Art of War."

In Josh's blog he asked the question, "Why should we prepare for war in peace and prepare for peace in times of war?"

I think what Sun Tzu meant by this is that people should be prepared for anything. We have to remember that this was written in a time of constant struggle for power and territory. If a country was not prepared for anything and everything to happen they could be easily defeated. I think it's important for us to prepare for peace in times of war because we often put aside our ability for compassion and unity in times of war. We have to, or we'd never be able to fight anyone. If there is any hope for a resolution in war we have to make gradual steps toward peace. We should prepare for war in peace if for no other reason than to protect ourselves from the inevitable. Wars happen, we might as well be ready. A person who believes that we can reach true peace would disagree with Sun Tzu saying that we must be preparing for war in peace. Is there really a need to be continually preparing for war in a world in which we no longer continually struggle (at least not violently) for territory or hegemony? Most people would probably agree that a country must be able to defend itself, but some would say that the country should not be continually readying itself for war.

My question is: do you think there will ever be a world in which war does not exist?