Re: your May 27 Pulse page on the Iraq war:

It seems to me that all those people who had letters published on May 27 did not once mention that the war had already been won by American and British boundary "flyovers" long before this President Bush invaded — and without the loss of one single pilot. There was also no civil war between Sunni and Shia. In fact, they were still marrying each other, and Iraqi oil pipes were safe.

Kurds were satisfied with having the North, Sunnis had the middle and the Shia had the South. The infrastructure was safe, and apart from a few anti-aircraft batteries opening up, Iraq was comparatively quiet and productive.

When Saddam did retaliate with anti-aircraft batteries, we just destroyed them. We had Saddam boxed in, frustrated and disciplined. We also had him there to maintain stability instead of the present-day confusion and day-to-day combat.

We also would have had 3,500-plus American and 50-plus British soldiers and scores of contractors still alive. And let’s not forget the death of approximately 2 million Iraqi men, women and children lost to suicide bombers.

We also had the option to take out Saddam’s palaces one by one if he became too obstintate or any structure that didn't cause the Iraqi population any discomfort. Iraq was more or less stabilized, producing oil that would have driven down the price of crude. How much are you paying for gas right now?

We are surely in another Vetnam, a winless war no matter how long it takes, and a world full of terrorists that are training by the hundreds. Now we've given them a better reason to train. They will keep us busy for the next 100 years.

God help our children and grandchildren, who will not only have to pay for it financially, but in loss of life, too. Those who started this war will change the world forever.

— Jim Gray, Ventura