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Recently Liberal MP Ted Hsu stood in the House to declare “Here in the Liberal Party we believe in hard work.  We believe in standing on one’s own two feet.  We believe paying one’s way and reaping what one sows.”  Such an ethos is to be expected from a former executive with Morgan Stanley, a $62 billion investment house that stands as a monument to the capitalist way.  But what is surprising is Hsu’s follow up to this declaration. “Markets never work perfectly.  The idea that we can simply cut taxes, let people stand on their own two feet, establish private property rights, and support a free market and that will solve everything and set up a good society does not work in practice.”

Hsu, the former investment capitalist, is staking his hope for Canada in a rather unexpected direction: philanthropy.  The Member for Kingston & the Islands is rallying his colleagues to support Bill S-201 – An Act to establish November 15 as a National Day of Philanthropy.

Hsu sees philanthropy as that social variable that rounds out the inherent inequalities in human opportunity.  Hsu says of his own success, “When I look back on my own life, I see that things I have been able to accomplish came from 50% hard work and 50% luck.”  The luck that Hsu refers to are those ‘external market forces’ that are the real make or break factor success: nurturing families, safe neighbourhoods, good health.  Somebody can be as bright and determined as the next person but a family that doesn’t provide, a school too dangerous to attend, or a debilitating health condition are disadvantages that meritocracy doesn’t always account for.

“When one looks at the roots of the words philanthropy and charity, that it is about love of God, love of man, and loving one’s neighbour as oneself,” Hsu said. “This is a love that is foreign to the market place.  It is love that is a free gift, something that is not earned or even deserved.  It is just given.  I think that is what should define us as humans, which is why philanthropy is important.”

Hsu’s call for a more giving Canada couldn’t come at a better time.  The most recent Stats Can figures indicate that people’s willingness to donate money or volunteer time has flat lined.  In 2010 Canadians contributed approximately $10 billion to charitable causes and donated 2.1 billion in volunteer hours.  While indeed these figures are nothing to sneeze at, they are virtual identical to the figures from 2007.  And the fact that these numbers cover the recent years of recession and economic difficulty further underlines the challenges of garnering help when people need it the most.

Of those who do provide charity, they are overwhelmingly religious Canadians.  For individuals who attended religious services at least once a week, 93% made some form of charitable donation in 2010, with their average annual donation being about $1000.  However it should also be noted that over 40% of all charitable donations go to religious organizations.

In terms of coast to coast goodwill, the west leads the way when it comes to lending a hand.  Alberta, Saskatchewan, and BC are the top three most charitable provinces with a combined average per capita donation of $549.  The least giving province was Quebec with an average donation rate of about $208.

Hsu is hoping that stronger efforts to recognize the value of philanthropy will motivate Canadians to not just look to the state for all the answers but to start working for solutions from within their own community.

“It is important for private individuals and governments to work together to make society a better place,” Hsu declared last Monday. “It is why it is not enough to simply have government programs to try to solve every problem.  It is important for people to donate what time and money they have to make society a better place.”

S-201, an Act Respecting a National Philanthropy Day is currently before the Senate.  Hsu is hoping to see this bill pass into law in the coming year.

Garry Breitkreuz , the Conservative Member of Parliament for Yorkton-Melville since 1993, has become well known both nationally and internationally for his work and expertise on the federal long gun registry file.

It all started 18 years ago, one year after his election. The rookie MP was asked to attend a town Hall meeting opposing the federal long gun registry. He admits he didn’t know much about the topic at the time. He was surprised to find the room heavily crowded, signaling this was a hot-button issue for his constituents.

“I was just shocked how many people were there. The reason I was shocked it was -39° — and with the wind chill it was even colder than that,” he recalls.  “They welcomed me to the platform and asked that I make a few remarks. I didn’t really know anything about the firearms issue, so I said some off-handed remarks like: “Well I don’t know how you can be opposed to gun control. Would not be a good thing, you know, improving public safety ?” he recalls. “They were very polite and they challenged me to take a closer look, scratch below the surface, and see what this is all about… I had to do a 180, after few months.”

Breitkreuz became convinced the registry was not doing its job, and should be eliminated. Since then his party has maintained that the long gun registry – introduced by the Liberals, and supported by some NDP – did not save lives, but instead made criminals out of any legal long gun owners who did not keep their paperwork up to date. This year the Conservatives pushed through controversial legislation to scrap the registry.

But now – many of our viewers wanted to know – will the Conservatives take up the hand gun controversy?

#FAQMP received a number of questions from handgun owners who are concerned that since 1995 the Firearms Act has been under the Criminal Code. Key among the concerns our viewers expressed was that even making a mistake on paperwork can leave a legitimate handgun owner with a criminal record. They argue too many police resources are being wasted catching “paperwork” criminals rather than pursuing owners of illegally owned hand guns, which are responsible for 90 per cent of gun-related crime.

“When the dust settles on getting rid of the gun registry, we have to see if there’s any other ineffective laws that need to be looked at. I think that’s something we should look at every area of government before wasting resources in areas that are not useful then why not reallocate those resources,” Breitkreuz replied in response to one viewer’s question.

This Monday, you open the debate on hand guns with Garry Breitkreuz,. We also asked those questions you sent in on the election fraud scandal,  First Nations education, and the ups and downs of social media in politics. Tune in to watch on ichannel, or online Monday April 23 at 8 pm ET.