It's strange to compare Western and Eastern values. Confucius says that the sage ruler will consult and serve the people and his subjects will in turn correct him. This sounds like democracy, but I can tell you it is not democracy. It is Confucian feudalism. In theory, it sounds very good, but in reality it works as well as utopian socialism. The model founding Confucian emperor has 2 wives but his 10th descendant would have a harem of 1000-2000 and by that time, the sage ruler is no more. The decay sets in after sometime, which happens to all top down systems. A good example is the Korean Chosun dynasty which is based on Confucianism. Today, we have DPRK, which is more Confucian than socialist. Feudalism doesn't work. It didn't work for 2000 years. Why? Because there is no such thing as a sage. Man is not god. Once a person thinks he is god, there's a good chance he grows crazy. There are many religions with a top down approach, but the highest power in all religion is god, not human. That's why the top down system may still work for religious organisations. The Confucian system treats the ruler as a demi-god and the people must treat him like a god and he has to act like a god, generous, virtuous and magnanimous. Can the Europeans or Middle eastern people accept such a system?
