Do deleted scenes ‘count’?

A few weeks ago, the post for Business School deleted scenes generated an interesting debate on whether these scenes “counted” in Dunder Mifflin reality, even though they never officially aired.

Well, according to Office show runner Greg Daniels, yes, Virginia, deleted scenes are canon:

Daniels is rare among producers in his belief that the deleted scenes have as much validity as the ones that made it to air, explaining, “For the writers, in our minds, those scenes have happened. We wrote them, we shot them, and at the last minute, I cut them in the editing room, but we’re relying on them anyway for the mythology of the show.”

Link: On the Web, a new life for deleted scenes (link no longer available)