Why "Veteran Led Mutiny" Rhetoric Is Playing With Fire,
And the TRUTH about what the Rules Say!

I just finished watching James Merritt’s video "Veteran Led Mutiny" (uploaded December 15, 2025), and honestly, it hit harder than I expected. Merritt, a career soldier, former platoon leader in Afghanistan, and someone who’s actually paid professional prices for standing on principle, lays out a calm, no-nonsense explanation of why recent calls from elected veterans to “refuse illegal orders” are not just risky, but potentially criminal under military law.

We’re in a strange moment. After the November 2025 video from six Democratic lawmakers (all with military or intelligence backgrounds: Sen. Mark Kelly, Sen. Elissa Slotkin, Reps. Jason Crow, Chrissy Houlahan, Chris Deluzio, and Maggie Goodlander), “The Seditious Six”, plus separate statements from figures like Illinois National Guard Capt. Dylan Blaha, there’s been a wave of messaging telling service members they “must” disobey what some call unlawful domestic deployments. The lawmakers even closed with the famous line “Don’t give up the ship,” a naval rallying cry now being repurposed to imply resistance against the chain of command.

Merritt’s core point is simple and brutal: unless an order is manifestly illegal (think My Lai-level atrocities, war crimes, or clear violations like using troops for straight-up civilian law enforcement in violation of Posse Comitatus), refusing it is a career-ender, and often worse. He walks through the relevant Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) articles with the kind of clarity you only get from someone who’s lived it:

• Article 92, Failure to obey a lawful order: Up to 2 years confinement, dishonorable discharge. That discharge means losing the right to vote, own firearms, get most jobs, federal benefits, and more. It’s not a slap on the wrist.

• Article 82, Soliciting or advising disobedience: Up to 10 years.

• Article 94, Mutiny or sedition: In the most extreme framing, even the death penalty.

• Article 88, Contemptuous words against the President: Up to 1 year confinement, dismissal from service, forfeiture of ALL pay and allowances.

He stresses the razor-thin line: you must refuse clearly unlawful orders (Nuremberg principle), but everything else requires following first and challenging through proper channels, IG, JAG, chain of command. Guessing wrong costs everything.

Merritt shares his own story from Afghanistan: he refused what he saw as an unlawful, reckless order from a toxic commander. It triggered an IG investigation, the commander was relieved, but Merritt got an ARCOM instead of a Bronze Star, was labeled a troublemaker, and fell a full rank behind his peers despite stellar evals. His takeaway? “Even when you’re right, there’s still a price to be paid”. That’s not a hypothetical. It’s real life.

What bothers me most is how this messaging comes from people who should know better. Sen. Mark Kelly (retired Navy captain) and the others aren’t rookies. They’ve worn the uniform. Capt. Blaha, who urged disobedience over potential Portland/Chicago-area deployments, is still in the Guard (though reports show he lost his security clearance after going public). When sitting lawmakers or serving officers publicly encourage refusal without crystal-clear illegality, it doesn’t just confuse junior troops. It can cross into soliciting mutiny territory under Article 82 UCMJ or even 18 U.S.C. § 2387 for civilians.

Merritt also calls out groups like notwhatyousignedupfor.org that use encrypted channels to whisper advice to service members. If it’s legitimate legal help, why hide? Legit organizations don’t operate in shadows.

At the end of the day, here’s what I took away personally:

• The military isn’t perfect, but it has real safeguards: constant law-of-war training, JAG officers at battalion level and above, rules of engagement briefings. Unlawful orders in garrison/domestic scenarios are rare for good reason.

• Politicians, especially veteran ones, should be the last people sowing doubt in the ranks. If they truly believe orders are illegal, use the courts, Congress, oversight, not public incitement that risks putting young troops in legal jeopardy.

• For anyone in uniform reading this: only refuse when you’re 100% certain it’s illegal, document everything, and seek written clarification first. Don’t let political noise turn you into a sacrificial pawn.

We’re living in polarized times, and fear is a powerful weapon. Videos like this one cut through some of the noise with straight facts and lived experience. Whether you agree with the current administration’s deployments or not, undermining lawful orders isn’t patriotism. It’s a fast track to chaos.

If you haven’t seen it, I recommend watching the full thing: "Veteran Led Mutiny". It’s about 19 minutes of clear-headed reality in a season full of spin.

What do you think? Is this overblown caution, or exactly the kind of reality check we need right now? 



Let us know what you think!