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 Kovnik Obama wrote:

This is still a civilian boat, right? Why the hell would you need an anti-missile system? You could sink that thing without spending millions of dollars in a missile...

Crazy russians...

You could, but Abramovich* has a 40 man personal security staff for that. He's basically a Bond villain.



*Also, the Eclipse is only one of Abramovich's 5 yachts. Previously he had 8, but sold one, gave one away, and lost a third in a divorce settlement.

 whembly wrote:
So... what's the problem? That he's rich?

Yes, but that's a problem for a different thread. The primary issue is the complacency and transparency of bribery via campaign contribution in modern politics. This is of course not limited to Romney, but cracker bay, a different countries flag, and the fact that it's actually a giant Yacht makes this look really bad for him as a candidate trying to look like he's ever lived some semblance of a normal life.

 dogma wrote:

Its also vastly inferior to the Cracker Bay in all respects, plus it would most likely be restored by European contractors at a higher price than simply chartering a functioning vessel.

11m-13m at last count, though 5m to get her sea worthy enough to go back to the US for restoration.

And, no, it is superior in at least one way. She's not named Cracker Bay.

She's also longer. 293 feet as opposed to 150. Despite the Williamsburg being longer, wider, and a greater displacement, Cracker Bay is slower by half a knot.

She also has a longer range than the Cracker Bay.


And was built in the US as opposed to the Netherlands.

 dogma wrote:

 Kovnik Obama wrote:

This is still a civilian boat, right? Why the hell would you need an anti-missile system? You could sink that thing without spending millions of dollars in a missile...

Crazy russians...

You could, but Abramovich* has a 40 man personal security staff for that. He's basically a Bond villain.



*Also, the Eclipse is only one of Abramovich's 5 yachts. Previously he had 8, but sold one, gave one away, and lost a third in a divorce settlement.

Any shmug with some C4 or a couple of RPGs could probably still bring the thing down. Luxury boats aren't exactly the sturdiest or sink proofiest of all ships.

 ShumaGorath wrote:


Any shmug with some C4 or a couple of RPGs could probably still bring the thing down. Luxury boats aren't exactly the sturdiest or sink proofiest of all ships.

Another good point in favor of the Williamsburg. I'm told they never removed her armor belt.

 dogma wrote:

 Kovnik Obama wrote:

This is still a civilian boat, right? Why the hell would you need an anti-missile system? You could sink that thing without spending millions of dollars in a missile...

Crazy russians...

You could, but Abramovich* has a 40 man personal security staff for that. He's basically a Bond villain.



*Also, the Eclipse is only one of Abramovich's 5 yachts. Previously he had 8, but sold one, gave one away, and lost a third in a divorce settlement.

That is nuts.

''Hum, I wonder which yacht I'll take this day?''

 ShumaGorath wrote:

 whembly wrote:
So... what's the problem? That he's rich?

Yes, but that's a problem for a different thread. The primary issue is the complacency and transparency of bribery via campaign contribution in modern politics. This is of course not limited to Romney, but cracker bay, a different countries flag, and the fact that it's actually a giant Yacht makes this look really bad for him as a candidate trying to look like he's ever lived some semblance of a normal life.

So...

Who do you want for Prez? If you had a pick... who would it be? (I pick Frazzle).

 BaronIveagh wrote:

11m-13m at last count, though 5m to get her sea worthy enough to go back to the US for restoration.

Wait, what? The man responsible for selling the vessel is quoting a figure of ~130 million USD, plus a ~12 million USD purchase price.

 BaronIveagh wrote:

And, no, it is superior in at least one way. She's not named Cracker Bay.

Then rename the Cracker Bay, that wasn't the ship's original name anyway, or charter a different vessel.

 BaronIveagh wrote:

She's also longer. 293 feet as opposed to 150. Despite the Williamsburg being longer, wider, and a greater displacement, Cracker Bay is slower by half a knot.

She also has a longer range than the Cracker Bay.

You realize that smaller doesn't mean faster, right? Nor is the only factor to consider speed. You also have to factor in stability, draught, operating cost, and cruising speed. For the purposes of the Romney campaign (I should have made that context more clear, perhaps.), the Cracker Bay is superior in every way.

Range is important, but this is the Caribbean, not a transatlantic cruise.

 BaronIveagh wrote:

And was built in the US as opposed to the Netherlands.

Why does that matter when its 82 years old*? Its not like restoring it would somehow entail supporting US industry. Its ancient and essentially useless, particularly given the context of this thread.

*Or even if it were brand new?

 BaronIveagh wrote:

Another good point in favor of the Williamsburg. I'm told they never removed her armor belt.

Probably not, but it would come off in any restoration as its most likely unusable now.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 ShumaGorath wrote:

Any shmug with some C4 or a couple of RPGs could probably still bring the thing down. Luxury boats aren't exactly the sturdiest or sink proofiest of all ships.

I'm going to assume that someone who has a yacht built with an anti-missile system, and has a 40 man personal security team, probably didn't overlook that little detail.

 whembly wrote:

 ShumaGorath wrote:

 whembly wrote:
So... what's the problem? That he's rich?

Yes, but that's a problem for a different thread. The primary issue is the complacency and transparency of bribery via campaign contribution in modern politics. This is of course not limited to Romney, but cracker bay, a different countries flag, and the fact that it's actually a giant Yacht makes this look really bad for him as a candidate trying to look like he's ever lived some semblance of a normal life.

So...

Who do you want for Prez? If you had a pick... who would it be? (I pick Frazzle).

That's kind of a loaded question, but I'll pick myself. I know where I stand on issues. I'm consistent. I've both built that and had that built for me. I'd be the best and worst president we've had in ages because I'm an absolute outsider who knows more about fixing our problems than most in Washington but I wouldn't be able to work in the system since I think that our democracy is broken and can't be fixed except outside democratic means (because Americans are dumb, corporations are uniformally corrupt, our news media is yellow, and one out of our two parties is basically racist skeletor town).

I'm going to assume that someone who has a yacht built with an anti-missile system, and has a 40 man personal security team, probably didn't overlook that little detail.

There's no countermeasure to having a brick of C4 touching the side of your boat outside of proactively preventing that from happening. There are very few ways to proactively prevent that from happening if they have a scuba tank.

That's it...

SHUMAGORATH for PRESIDENT!

Where can I donate!

 Kovnik Obama wrote:

feeder wrote:

 Kovnik Obama wrote:
I'd live in Yacht number 1 or 2.

A yacht with a castle on? Can't buy good taste
A yacht that's actually a floating parking lot? Nooooooo.

Anyway. I'm happy with my Laser.

Aaaaand now I'm picturing a shark with a frickin' Laser on it's head. With a terrified French-Canadian in the Laser.

You picture weird stuff
Just for clarification, a Laser's a dinghy. My dad being a huge sailing fan, AND and woodworker, I've had my own monosail since I was 16. Someone was about to trash it because of a few holes in the coque, so after a few months of epoxy works, I had my own free boat! Won me a few tournaments too!

I am jealous...

You don't have a block of C4 and a scuba tank do you?

 whembly wrote:
That's it...

SHUMAGORATH for PRESIDENT!

Where can I donate!

I'll let you send me money. I am not above that.

 purplefood wrote:

 Kovnik Obama wrote:

feeder wrote:

 Kovnik Obama wrote:
I'd live in Yacht number 1 or 2.

A yacht with a castle on? Can't buy good taste
A yacht that's actually a floating parking lot? Nooooooo.

Anyway. I'm happy with my Laser.

Aaaaand now I'm picturing a shark with a frickin' Laser on it's head. With a terrified French-Canadian in the Laser.

You picture weird stuff
Just for clarification, a Laser's a dinghy. My dad being a huge sailing fan, AND and woodworker, I've had my own monosail since I was 16. Someone was about to trash it because of a few holes in the coque, so after a few months of epoxy works, I had my own free boat! Won me a few tournaments too!

I am jealous...

Laser sailboats are awesome. You can beat those things like nothing else, and they respond incredibly to the slightess wind.

Although they'll suck if you want to throw a party for your campaign donators.

 dogma wrote:


Wait, what? The man responsible for selling the vessel is quoting a figure of ~130 million USD, plus a ~12 million USD purchase price.

Had not seen that. The sale figures posted (admittedly in 2008 which was the last time I looked at it) stated that restoration was included. Of course, this could be why that ad was pulled, as it was being sold at the time by the shipyard it was docked at, not someone from Florida. However, it's still less than buying a new built ship the same specs.

 dogma wrote:

Then rename the Cracker Bay, that wasn't the ship's original name anyway, or charter a different vessel.

Renaming ships is bad.

 dogma wrote:

You realize that smaller doesn't mean faster, right? Nor is the only factor to consider speed. You also have to factor in stability, draught, operating cost, and cruising speed. For the purposes of the Romney campaign (I should have made that context more clear, perhaps.), the Cracker Bay is superior in every way.

Range is important, but this is the Caribbean, not a transatlantic cruise.

Actually, it would be superior to the Romney campaign in one way as well. It's a US built ship. Made in America mean anything to you? Further, it means that the engines have superior power.

 dogma wrote:

Why does that matter when its 82 years old*? Its not like restoring it would somehow entail supporting US industry. Its ancient and essentially useless, particularly given the context of this thread.

*Or even if it were brand new?

I dunno, maybe because his campaign slogan seems to be 'We Built That!'. It'd be like him giving one of those 'We built That' speeches from the back of a Ferrari. And, writing off 'ancient' as 'useless' is a bad idea. When I was a kid, my great grandfather's 'ancient and useless' fishing boat survived a storm that sent quite a few more modern boats to the bottom of Lake Erie.

 dogma wrote:

Probably not, but it would come off in any restoration as its most likely unusable now.

...I was going to ask why, but I'll assume that you're going based on the exterior rust. And, no, if the hull is still as intact as they claim, then the armor belt is likely less weathered. The thing about internal armor belts is that they might slow the ship down, but they don't corrode much.

 dogma wrote:

I'm going to assume that someone who has a yacht built with an anti-missile system, and has a 40 man personal security team, probably didn't overlook that little detail.

You'd be surprised. The USS Cole didn't notice men in a boat, after all.

 Kovnik Obama wrote:

 purplefood wrote:

 Kovnik Obama wrote:

feeder wrote:

 Kovnik Obama wrote:
I'd live in Yacht number 1 or 2.

A yacht with a castle on? Can't buy good taste
A yacht that's actually a floating parking lot? Nooooooo.

Anyway. I'm happy with my Laser.

Aaaaand now I'm picturing a shark with a frickin' Laser on it's head. With a terrified French-Canadian in the Laser.

You picture weird stuff
Just for clarification, a Laser's a dinghy. My dad being a huge sailing fan, AND and woodworker, I've had my own monosail since I was 16. Someone was about to trash it because of a few holes in the coque, so after a few months of epoxy works, I had my own free boat! Won me a few tournaments too!

I am jealous...

Laser sailboats are awesome. You can beat those things like nothing else, and they respond incredibly to the slightess wind.

Although they'll suck if you want to throw a party for your campaign donators.

Well my campaign donors would consist of me and a bottle of port...

You'd be surprised. The USS Cole didn't notice men in a boat, after all.

Yes they did. Last action of the boat crew was salute before they blew up beside the Cole

 Jihadin wrote:

Yes they did. Last action of the boat crew was salute before they blew up beside the Cole

And, yet, their attack succeeded (to a greater or lesser degree).

 purplefood wrote:
Well my campaign donors would consist of me and a bottle of port...

Just in case, a Laser is horribly prone to belling. Their also incredibly easy to switch back up, but still, I wouldn't want to try that drunk

 Kovnik Obama wrote:

 purplefood wrote:
Well my campaign donors would consist of me and a bottle of port...

Just in case, a Laser is horribly prone to belling. Their also incredibly easy to switch back up, but still, I wouldn't want to try that drunk

Worth it. I'm not entirely shoddy when drunk...
Though it does depend how drunk...

 purplefood wrote:

Worth it. I'm not entirely shoddy when drunk...
Though it does depend how drunk...

You British are lucky. You can buy good ships for less than you can in the US. And don't have to deal with legal stupidity trying to buy Dunkirk little ships.

 BaronIveagh wrote:

 purplefood wrote:

Worth it. I'm not entirely shoddy when drunk...
Though it does depend how drunk...

You British are lucky. You can buy good ships for less than you can in the US. And don't have to deal with legal stupidity trying to buy Dunkirk little ships.

What's the problem there?
Unless you're trying to buy one of the original ones...

However drunk you are don't put on a Ghilla suit......

Do you... lose yourself?

You might get run over by two teen girls

Yes, that does sound like a rather negative experience.
That would the same happen if I dressed as a giant bunny rabbit?

You might be accused of having a certain type of fetish...or a child molester...

 purplefood wrote:

What's the problem there?
Unless you're trying to buy one of the original ones...

That was exactly the problem. Better, it was the Count Dracula (formerly the pinnace of the German Battlecruiser Hindenburg and a survivor of Jutland, Dogger Bank, and the scuttling at Scapa Flow, and later used to evacuate from Dunkirk.) They kept dropping the price further and further, but wouldn't sell outside of Britain. I guess they finally sold her for 60k pounds.

It was one of the few things I would have been willing to send my muskets to Sotheby's for.

 BaronIveagh wrote:

 purplefood wrote:

What's the problem there?
Unless you're trying to buy one of the original ones...

That was exactly the problem. Better, it was the Count Dracula (formerly the pinnace of the German Battlecruiser Hindenburg and a survivor of Jutland, Dogger Bank, and the scuttling at Scapa Flow, and later used to evacuate from Dunkirk.) They kept dropping the price further and further, but wouldn't sell outside of Britain. I guess they finally sold her for 60k pounds.

60k for that seems a crime. That's a pretty boat.

 Kovnik Obama wrote:

 BaronIveagh wrote:

 purplefood wrote:

What's the problem there?
Unless you're trying to buy one of the original ones...

That was exactly the problem. Better, it was the Count Dracula (formerly the pinnace of the German Battlecruiser Hindenburg and a survivor of Jutland, Dogger Bank, and the scuttling at Scapa Flow, and later used to evacuate from Dunkirk.) They kept dropping the price further and further, but wouldn't sell outside of Britain. I guess they finally sold her for 60k pounds.

60k for that seems a crime. That's a pretty boat.

The issue with that is that it's a part of a fairly important event in national history i'd assume.
The same issue with the last Vulcan bomber...