Dealing with non conformity is a favorite Drill Instructor pastime. When expert marksmanship badges were handed out, I wasn’t paying attention and thanked the Platoon Commander rather than just acknowledging him with a “Yes Sir”.
Later the Drill Instructor’s brim of his Smokey Bear beat my forehead underneath the brim of my cover. “Seems like someone here still wants to be an individual!” This is usually followed by a sprinting of side straddle hops, hello dollys, push ups and leg lifts on the Quarter Deck.
Believe me….there are worse things than conformity. In California where I went to school, students that fell asleep in the classroom were required to pick up and hold the tailhook of an F-4 Phantom in the back of the class. That alone convinced me that if I had to stand to stay awake then I needed to stand.
People that chewed tobacco during formation were addressed by the Plt Sgt long enough until it was necessary to swallow it while answering his questions. Oh yes, there are things that are worse than conformity.