In front of a flying bullet

On September 4th, Paul Oram defended his decision — not the health board's; note the possessive — regarding medical services in Flowers Cove and other localities:

My decision's final. I've said that from the beginning

On September 25th, the outgoing Hon. Member for Flowers Cove said, in his farewell scrum:

Anybody who's gonna speculate that this has anything to with Flowers Cove, it absolutely does not. I support the government's decision on the changes to medical services in Flowers Cove.

On September 30th, defending his government's policies in rural areas on CBC Crosstalk with Ramona Dearing, rural development minister Shawn Skinner (whose downtown St. John's district is, literally, as urban as it gets) told the host and radio listenrs:

Well, I agree with the Provincial Government's decision on the clinic in Flower's Cove. And it's about balance, and it's about understanding that as a province we have a lot of needs, and we have a lot of people who are requiring certain levels of service. We're making a significant investment in Flower's Cove in a facility. We are cognizant of the the fact that there's some people that don't agree with that decision. I would assume the Minister of Health at some point will be communicating in a more detailed way with the people out there.

Again, notice the support for the Flowers Cove decision. From Oram (who apparently made it), from Taylor, and from Skinner.

And notice the possessive: the decision is the Provincial Government's.

So much for the "look at what the health boards made us do!" narrative.

And really: how hard must it suck to be a Minister or MHA in Danny Williams-Government these days?

You jump between the Boss and the flying bullets — which came out of the barrel and his own gun — and then he stops shooting.

Hi, Wade Verge! How's it goin' bud?