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Crazy Eric Schmidt, His Yacht Prices Are Insaaane!
theodp writes "After languishing on the market, the price of Google Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt's Lone Ranger expedition yacht was cut from $20,000,000 to a mere $14,000,000 (sales brochure). Still no takers for the vessel, so the former pride of the Schmidt Ocean Institute — which can travel an amazing 31,000 miles at 12 knots thanks to a fuel capacity of 1.3 million liters — will be auctioned "as is" on April 20th at the Antibes Yacht Show, with bid estimates ranging from EUR 3 million to EUR 10 million (auction brochure). 'Lone Ranger and her truly astonishing story will appeal to a new generation of luxury yacht owner,' the sales brochure notes. 'The yacht epitomizes low key luxury, but most importantly offers the ideal platform for anyone wanting to explore the farthest flung corners of the world with their family.' And you can buy it just in time for Earth Day gift giving!"
Oh look, it says "George Town, Cayman Islands" beneath the name on the ship ... and the brochure says "NOT FOR SALE OR CHARTER TO U.S.
RESIDENTS WHILE IN U.S. WATERS."
Taxes are such a bitch, aren't they Eric?
That is one ugly yacht. A tug converted into a yacht? That's like converting a dump truck into a limo.
That's a yacht? Looks like a commercial fishing vessel or a coast guard cutter.
I suppose if you need to intercept drug smugglers or rescue someone it might be the thing... but most yacht buyers are looking for a nice place to drape their naked women.
Maw! Fire up the karma burner!
People like to gripe about what "rich people" buy with their cash. But why not spen it on toys if you can afford it? Unless the current Group Think is that Rich People should give away all their money a la Bill Gates?
Jealousy issue?
If you want news from today, you have to come back tomorrow.
The day you buy it and the day you sell it.
I know theodp is big into the "the man is screwing you" themes but how did this get greenlighted?
Look at it, it's a research vessel, and it's ugly. Eric Schmidt started an organization for researching the oceans. Great idea.
"First they came for the slanderers and i said nothing."
It's a fishing vessel tricked out inside. It emphasizes "low-key luxury".
That kind of misses the point, huge-swinging-dick-look-at-me-hot-babes-wise, don:t you think?
(-1: Post disagrees with my already-settled worldview) is not a valid mod option.
Much more serious-looking than the over-styled fiberglass fantasies the super rich seem to typically buy. Probably a better ocean-going vessel, as well. If I had, say, $30M, I'd spend $10M of it on that.
I love it, but does anyone outside the NY metro area get it?
Oh wait, would anyone inside the NY metro area care about anyone outside the NY metro area?
Nevermind...
Whenever people wonder why the ultra-rich (movie stars, music stars, sports starts, CEOs, lottery winners, etc) end up going bankrupt, I point out stuff like this. There's no point in owning a boat like this unless you plan to live on it. For the number of times you'd actually be able to use the thing, it would make much more sense to just rent the boat. If you are going to own the boat, you should at least of some kind of business set up that rents it out while you're not using it. I'm all for people spending money if they have it, but this type of purchase is just completely ridiculous. You'll never in your life get $14 million worth of enjoyment out of a boat.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
(Picture of man hunched over looking despondent)
"I've grown bored with my giant yacht. Now no one wants to buy it."
If it flies, floats, or fornicates; rent it.
I'm sorry, but your opinion seems to be wrong.
1) The day he buys it.
2) The day he sells it.
Out of curiosity, how are those positions not mutually exclusive?
Space game using normal deck of cards: http://BattleCards.org
This might make sense for some Russian oil oligarch who has to visit oil platforms in the White Sea. For anybody else, it's kind of pointless.
At least it's more seaworthy than that boxy thing Steve Jobs had built.
It would be a real shame if his boat caught on fire before it was sold.
$20,000,000 to a mere $14,000,000
presumably that's USD. Also all digits and no words (as in 14,000,000 rather than 14 million)
with bid estimates ranging from EUR 3 million to EUR 10 million
and not knowing the exchange rate off the top of my head, I couldn't tell you how far off $14M USD is from 10M EUR. And the numbers are the opposite of above, spelling out 'million' rather than using digits.
And then there's this gem:
which can travel an amazing 31,000 miles at 12 knots thanks to a fuel capacity of 1.3 million liters
so, distance is in miles (imperial), speed is knots (nautical miles rather than miles) and then capacity is liters (metric)
Pick a style, pick a system, and STICK WITH IT.
William of Ockham had no beard. The most likely explanation is that it was chewed off by squirrels every morning.
They're using the wrong sales pitch. It should be all about capabilities/adventure -- "the Lone Ranger can safely take you places other superyachts would not dream of going" -- not durability and "low key luxury". Yacht buyers are not usually seeking "low key" in their luxury, especially when it translates to "looks like a big fishing trawler".
1.3 Million liters is 317,006 US gallons
According to this:
http://www.psmfc.org/efin/data/fuel.html#Data
Marine fuel costs between 3.5$ and 4$ a gallon.
At 4$ a gallon, it would cost almost 1.3$ Million dollars to fill the thing with fuel!
So really considering that it would be almost 1/10 of the value, 14 Million is pretty disposable! 10 Fill ups and it would pay for itself! :)
It would also get (317,006 / 31,000) 10 mpg! Likely pretty Eco-friendly for a ship...
Boeing does the same thing – It sells all of its aircraft while flying in international waters – that way customers don’t have to pay sales tax.
This is a myth. Large companies like Boeing (and Airbus with its new plant under construction in Mobile, AL) get sales tax abatements from local governments in exchange for and agreeing to continue to build aircraft in the area.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdi6E-qzS1c
Even if you're on the right track, you'll get run over if you just sit there. - Will Rogers
Judging from the psychopathic tone of your post, I wouldn't be surprised if you indeed earn more than $1000000 USD per year.
My salary is fine and I have no envy, so until corresponding laws are in place it's no problem for me when rich people spend their money. Why shouldn't they? (And of course to some people someone with a salary slightly below $1000000 USD a year might still count as insanely rich, not sure about that.)
She draws over 6 meters! That alone eliminates most of the places in the world I'd want to visit by boat.
I have no problem with people who buy expensive yachts if they happen to be insanely rich.
I'll bet the insanely rich are relieved to have had their spending prerogatives blessed by none other than you.
o_O
Maw! Fire up the karma burner!
why 1000000? Why not 1500000 or 750000? Or for that matter 100000?
As many people have noted, his ocean research non profit is selling some boats that look an awful lot like the sort of workhorse boats that such a non profit would be expected to have. That's not Eric Schmidt's yacht. This is Eric Schmidt's yacht. It's got a night club.
I don't think obvious trolling pays that much.
"They were pure niggers." – Noam Chomsky
To a communist, it sort of makes sense. $1M per year buys you most of life's luxuries while attenuating the maximum influence an individual can have over capital development. You can have a nice house, but you can't engage in a massive development project without forming or joining a collective.
If you want a sort of hierarchical quasi-meritocracy like we have now, while cutting down individual enterprise, a $1M cap is intuitively reasonable.
Of course I'm not advocating such a scheme (it would fail for any number of reasons), just saying that if this were your intention, you'd pick $1M over $100K or $1B.
"They were pure niggers." – Noam Chomsky
> Eric Schmidt's Lone Ranger expedition yacht was cut from $20,000,000 to a mere $14,000,000
.... Ok gimme my 12 million!"
"Ok Schmidt. Let's haggle. I'll give you 12! No, you can't think on it. Tell me now! Right now! 3, 2, 1..."
"SOLD!!!!
"Who said anything about million? Muahahahahhahaha!"
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and the beholder that sees beauty in this boat is:
a) a fisherman;
b) a tug captain; or
c) a researcher.
Which of the above is likely to have 10 million plus to sink in to a vessel that would then need to be remodeled (+$$$) to either fish, do tug work, or do research?
BTW, she started life in 1973 as an ocean-going tug and was converted (for $millions) to a yacht. No question that she is likely an awesomely tough and seaworthy vessel, much more so than any other yacht out there today.
"Consensus" in science is _always_ a political construct.
Think maybe Eric Schmidt is compensating for something?
I've abandoned my search for truth; now I'm just looking for some useful delusions.
Looks like a perfect donation to Green Peace. "The WiFi Worrier", with a dog called "Ann-Droid"