East Asia philosophies & order

1)While most people today probably do not believe oracle bones can tell the future, one of the important implications of oracle bones is that people in ancient China believed the world to be a logical and rational place– that the future was something that could be foretold by asking the heavens or studying patterns in nature. Are we still interested in foreseeing the future? How do we do it?

2) If you were emperor of a dynasty in East Asia, which of the three philosophies covered in the lecture (Confucianism, Daoism, Legalism) would you embrace to create and maintain order? Why do you believe your choice to be more effective than the other two? 3) What elements or ideas from these philosophies do we see at work in our own society? What are some of the similarities, influences, or common ideas and beliefs between these philosophies and our own approach to government and social order?