They felt the need to PRETEND to adhere to principles. This is a nuance I don't expect people to grasp immediately, but it's very important. It's why so many genocidal and naked aggression war crimes have been lied about over time and it gives the opposition time to force their hand in how they cover them or cover them up. That is a timing thing. It takes time to craft a coverup or cover story - and gives opposing/dissenting people time to formulate hard questions - and without even that minor impediment they're just going to do it. And more frequently and more violently.

I hope you can see this. I'm not trying to win an argument on the Internet; I just think you're missing a crucial part of the context. To apply this maxim to the Nazis in WWII, if they had openly said they were murdering millions of Jews, Roma, Slavs, etc. then yes - that would have evoked or forced a much quicker reaction to resistance: BUT WHO IS THE ACTUAL RESISTANCE NOW? Define it!