Here come the warm and fuzzy jets

“A Steady Stream of Road Upgrades Keeps Flowing,” crows Trevor Taylor’s latest press release, touting the benevolence of Danny Williams-Government, and the skill of His Minister’s urologist, in the electoral districts of Placentia-St. Mary’s, Bellevue, and Grand Bank.

“Road Improvement Momentum Continues,” proclaimed Trevor’s previous effort on behalf of Danny Williams-Government, in the districts of Conception Bay East-Bell Island and Cape St. Francis.

“Provincial Roads Program Keeps Rolling,” was the motion-related metaphor of choice in Trevor’s outing the previous day, playing up Danny Williams-Government’s unprecedented blah blah blah in Straits-White Bay North, Ferryland, Terra Nova, and Gander. “Beneficiaries,” they are known as.

Danny Williams-Government, Trevor Taylor, Minister, announced “Lays Out More Road Work” on April 9th, bestowing its benevolent beneficiary status on the good people of Grand Falls-Windsor-Buchans, Fortune Bay-Cape La Hune and Harbour Main districts.

And it all began for the year on April 3rd, when Danny Williams-Government, under the rather prosaic headline “First Projects Tendered Under 2009-10 Roads Improvement Program”, began rolling out the stream of momentum in “the Bay of Islands” (which has acquired a definite article, perhaps from the same place that capitalizes the word Government), St. Georges - Stephenville East, Isles of Notre Dame, and Bonavista North.

Sixteen districts down, sixteen or so to go.

Now, here’s the curious thing. The two earliest releases contained the following Williams-Governmenty boilerplate:

The Provincial Roads Improvement Program will create an estimated 1,400 person years of employment and is part of the Provincial Government’s infrastructure strategy, valued at more than $4 billion over the next several years. As part of Budget 2009, the Williams Government will invest over $300 million in transportation infrastructure.

Abridged in the three latest ones to the decidedly less Williams-Governmenty:

The Provincial Roads Improvement Program will create an estimated 1,400 person years of employment and is part of the Provincial Government’s infrastructure strategy, valued at more than $4 billion over the next several years.

The only dollar figures mentioned in the releases are the vague “more than $4 billion”, over the equally vague “next several years”, and “$300 million in transportation infrastructure” as part of Budget 2009.

That is to say, in sharp contrast with the practice of previous years, Danny Williams-Government isn’t highlighting the funding allocated on a district-by-district basis, go-forwardly.

What on earth could be the reason for that? Hmm?