Air traffic was light, and the airport was remote enough from the rest of the city to avoid raising hackles. But with the emergence of the technology industry, once sleepy San Jose got plowed under to make way for housing that now extends all the way to the outskirts of a now bustling airport. Such is progress, and folks in the adjoining quarters have been paying the price in sedatives. It's arrogant and bad citizenship on Larry Ellison's part to thumb his nose at the people of San Jose. In the latest episode of this escalating kerfuffle, the city of San Jose and local neighborhood groups believe there's enough case law on the books to make the curfew stick.
Nobody is above the law, regardless of wealth, says the mayor.
Ellison, who is making noises about taking the city to court, believes San Jose has no right to tell him when he can land his toys. In other words, it's time to make room for the big dog, and too bad if that rubs you the wrong way. But unless San Jose puts up a SAM anti-aircraft battery, there's not much the locals can do outside of stick him with a fat fine. Maybe this is how Leona Helmsley would have turned out if hubby Harry had gone into high tech. What a biased story.