Letter: Homeowner chose to live near air base

Thursday, April 19, 2001 | 8:39 a.m.

I am writing in response to the April 11 letter from Paul Morris. He purchased a house three months ago near Nellis Air Force Base, and is now complaining about the noise of jets flying over his house.

I have lived near the base for almost 20 years. When I moved here, I knew the base was close by. Yes, it can be annoying, but I chose to live near my workplace and understood the trade-off I was making. Morris apparently did not look at a map before buying his home. He seems to think that his only choices were near the base, in Summerlin or in Green Valley. There are many other areas available, including houses in all price ranges.

Morris wants the base moved, though he does not offer up his money to accomplish this. I do not think it would be an effective use of my tax dollars to move the entire base for his convenience. Each time I am "annoyed" by the jet noise, I remember that Nellis is a training base. A much larger percentage of the pilots who have had the advanced training provided by the base come home than those who do not have this kind of training.

I want the men and women who have volunteered to protect my freedom to have the best training possible. I want them to come back after putting their lives on the line to defend our country. I think the inconvenience is worth it. Nobody made you buy a house in this area. It is obvious from your letter, Mr. Morris, that you do not want to be in Las Vegas. I suggest you go back where you came from.

DOROTHY WAGNER