Share the blame for Pakistan’s problem

You say Pakistan has a problem (editorial, July 26). But, I ask, who gave the problem to Pakistan to begin with? Is it not true that the U.S. and Saudi Arabia gave guns and dollars to the Pakistani madrasa-going youth to fight a decade-long war against the Soviets? Now when the blowback of using fanatical jihadis has come to the West, you think it is solely Pakistan’s problem. That is absurd. I would like you to think again because it is not just Pakistan’s problem anymore; it has become a global problem. Instead of blaming Pakistan, Washington should work with Islamabad against the scourge of religious extremism.

David Khan

Juneau, Alaska

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In the Pakistan editorial, you mention Daniel Patrick Moynihan’s comments on poverty in India and then go on to say that Pakistan should stop exporting terrorism. What does poverty in India have to do with terrorism in Pakistan? Simply that the two countries share a border? And that therefore, the two countries must be the same? By following this logic, does poverty in Mexico have anything to do with the war in Iraq?

Nirupama Jayaraman

Whittier