ABSTRACT
Late in February 2012, in Afghanistan, US soldiers stood near the pile of burning Qurans in a landfill at Bagram Air Base, unknowing of the violence the act would cause in the near future. Seen by Afghan workers, who transmitted the message outside the base, the incident was responsible for the deaths of more than 30 Afghans, five US soldiers, and many other violent responses.2 There have been other incidents that undermined the social and political relationships between the United States and the Afghan people. These include the murder of 16 innocent people including women and children.3 US soldiers taking pictures while posing with dead bodies of insurgents,4 and US Marines urinating on dead Taliban fighters.5
