Confucius's way of thinking held China together for millenia, love it or hate it... and his philosophy of social hierarchy actually spelled out warnings as to how overexploitation of the people was morally wrong... Confucius had rules for the leaders, too. Not saying that Confucian thought is the correct model for a democratized society (like India's caste system, it belongs to yesterday's world), but it's more complicated than just a command to worship 'betters'... it was the social science of his time.

The point is, if we want to change something, we have to engage with it. This might sound a little bizarre coming from me, but I think Reagan should be granted his due for engaging with Gorbachev, and even Nixon with China originally. Their aims were largely strategic, of course, but that's what a prez does.