hese, then they will have a chance at obtaining a strong and followed government. Out of a good and strong society, you are bound to get a good and strong government as long as it follows similar rules to that of the society and works for the people. Chinas past has not had that privilege, at least not for the past half century or so. Beginning in 1949, Communism was the form of government used in China and as we all know, it prevents people from having a voice in the government. Confucius himself did not feel as though everybody should have a part of government, but he did feel that the government should do what was best for the people. Confucianism gave the idea of the Mandate of Heaven. We should not take this literally as it was in Confucius time, but rather take it in perspective of our own time. the people had the duty to obey and support the government as long as it provided good government. If not, the people had the right to rebel and replace the ruler with someone who had a new Mandate of Heaven. In a sense, America already has this, the process of impeachment. It is this way that China should look at this. The idea of rebelling is wrong, but making sure that the government is benevolent towards the people is excellent. What the previous quote in essence is saying is that the people, if ethical and moral, will love the government; if it is not, then it will be despised. The Confucian idea is that its people will love a government that loves and takes care of its people. One that does not, will not. These values are still prevalent today, though they need to be expanded upon in China. China needs to expand on the ideas of human rights. Confucianism is not simply the advocacy of obedience to government but also the accountability of government. If they really want to learn from Confucian humanism, they have to open up to more enlightened values, such as freedom of expression, the dignity of the individual and ...
