http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/politics/article/1053170--dechert-s-emails-should-spark-reminders-about-security-expert-says?bn=1As an average Canadian who has been a victim of the Intelligence community in Canada and a well-read consumer on the subject, I find it startling that this guy would not be demoted or placed in a less "dangerous" role after the email incident. I am all for giving someone a second chance, but this is a role in which you are constantly reminded of your responsibilities and what to watch for and/or avoid. If you are still so careless as to go forward knowing what you know than he is obviously not considering all of the potential consequences of his actions.
It is quite hypocritical to consider so many average Canadians as threats who are placed on on a watch list, face border issue or cannot fly, while someone in a high profile position is allowed to "flirt" with a foreign reporter who could easily be working for foreign intelligence. Even if she doesn't work for them, and there is nothing to suggest she does currently, you can be quite sure that her government would have approached her and offered benefits for her to assist them if she had in fact started to have a relationship with Mr. Dechert.
Mr. Baird's suggestion that he is a "mild mannered person" is laughable an a repulsive excuse for not taking action. It is as if he is saying, "if he were a fiery guy we might be concerned but since he is quiet he could not pose a threat". I have particularly seen Mr. Baird as self serving so I have no problems suggesting he is out to lunch with this comment. In fact, I might argue it is the quiet ones who make the easiest targets. Unlike in Canada, where CSIS and the RCMP work as agent provocateurs to make targets and organizations seem "riled up and radical", foreign intelligence agencies work with the facts and they realize that a quiet, unassuming target and unsuspecting target could pay off handsomely for many years before he is caught.