Mr. Speaker, I will try to follow your admonition.
I wanted to remind the hon. member from Capilano-Howe Sound that he should not have to look any further than his own colleagues to find the source for the partisan debate that has taken place in the last hour. The members of the Reform Party have done very well painting supporters of this government as the terrible oppressors of the taxpayers.
There is naturally a very legitimate debate over what is right and proper about taxes.
I suspect that there is not a Canadian anywhere who does not have at least some partial legitimate complaint about taxes. I find that acceptable. Too many of the speeches from the Reform Party members this afternoon have been monuments to greed and selfishness.
The parliamentary secretary made the comment this afternoon that the Reform Party members do not know anything about the way government works. I suspect that she is wrong on that point. I think they know very well how government works, and very often government gets in the way of their greed and their selfishness. All I hear from them is: "I don't want to share. I want to pay less. How can I get out of my responsibilities?"
They talk over and over about their rights, but never once do they talk about their responsibilities. We do have responsibilities to each other. The member from Skeena even invoked the name of Jesus Christ. I think he has nerve to use that name in this particular debate because his entire intervention was about greed and selfishness: "How can I get out of my responsibilities? Give me more as an individual but allow me to pay less. Allow me to contribute less to Canadian society."
These speakers contribute to this victimization syndrome that besets this country. We hear it from these people all the time: Politicians are rotten, leaders are rotten, Parliament is rotten, every governmental institution is rotten, you are the victim and you must cry out because those people in Ottawa and other capitals around the country are the oppressors. You do not have any responsibilities whatsoever. You are supposed to be on the take. You take everything for yourself. You do not contribute anything to your community. I think that is very irresponsible.
I have a question for the most recent Reform speaker. Tell me about your responsibilities. Where do your rights end and your responsibilities begin?