Of course not. In a democratic society, we want absolute freedom of the press at all times, and we celebrate that.
But I can tell you that each time it's raised we don't just dismiss it . First of all, there could be an individual who doesn't have full information. There may be the motivation, as there is on the political side, with pressure from constituents, to send out certain messages. In each one of those cases, calls are made either by me or, if it's a matter of foreign affairs, by Minister MacKay, right to the key individual, saying, “This has popped up again. Could you deal with it?” When we've made those calls, there's always been a degree of angst expressed by high-level officials, who have said, “We don't know. It's unfortunate that on an individual basis this continues to come out.”
Myths easily spin out. You'll recall that after the devastation, after the tragic events of 9/11, one of the first stories that came out within 24 hours was that the terrorists had crossed the border into Maine from Canada. There was absolutely no substance, not a shred of truth to that, and yet when a story like that first spins out, it grabs headlines. The correction was later made, and even the Americans corrected it and said, “No, you're right”. We reminded them that actually those people were from within their borders. They trained at their flight schools, not ours.
So it's a problem we have, Ms. Sgro. It's one that is frustrating. I met Congresswoman Slaughter, who I think at this very moment is testifying here in Canada for the Senate committee on banking. She is working with us very closely on some of the WHTI concerns. She is just as frustrated when her own counterparts come out with messages like that. She, along with her other comrades and colleagues, is going to be aggressively pursuing that.
So I'm glad you raised it. We get aggressive on it when we hear it. It is difficult to control once a misguided statement is made and then amplified by the media. Corrections are made, but it does send out a perception that just has no foundation in reality.