As a solider, you not only have a right but an obligation to not follow unlawful orders.

Most people say they would stand firm if they disagreed with a direct order. But based on waves and waves of studies, if you answered "no", you are statistically more likely than not to be lying.

We know this is deep in human nature, and that isn't inherently bad or shameful, it just means we are cooperative and conflict-averse beings. It takes something pretty strong to snap people out of it, which is why whistleblowers are exceedingly rare.

Plus, most disagreements are small in nature. You have to be honest and think about things like "that time your boss said you could come in to work without a mask despite it being mandated." A surprising amount of things happen due to an extended sequence of small corners being cut, or small disagreements being overlooked. Not everything is watching people being rounded into concentration camps right in front of your face.

However that being said, it is still a duty as a soldier to be a whistleblower. Soldiers especially are required to disobey unlawful orders. In fact, if we did not have such a law in place, the Nuremberg trials would have been entirely hypocritical.

If you actually make it through basic training and become a member of the armed forces, you’ll learn the importance of following orders, even if you don’t always agree with them. The statement refers to “commanding officer”, which if your CO gives you an order, you follow it, then follow up with your chain of command on your concerns with the order. The only time this doesn’t apply is if it is an unlawful order, in which case you don’t have to follow the order. From my personal experience, most Commanding Officer’s I ran into were open to suggestions and feedback before giving orders anyways, but they ultimately have to make a decision they feel is best for their unit. So, with that, for those that easily say they would say “no” to their CO due to simply disagreeing, they are probably the same ones who say “I wish a drill instructor would get in my face, because I’d punch them.” Maybe I’m taking it too literally with the CO part, but that’s how I understood the statement.