It's not every day that you run across a multimillion-dollar yacht in your hometown … that is, unless you live in San Diego.
One Redditor posted a photo of a towering vessel in the city's subreddit, identifying it as a $150 million yacht belonging to businessman Dennis Washington. The boat evidently docks in the city often, as another shared a photo of it in the same place, taken a year previously.
The yacht has drawn attention for being an eyesore and an unwelcome symbol of excessive wealth by San Diego residents. And while Forbes lists Washington's net worth at $7.4 billion, even this is far from the most luxurious vessel that he could buy.
"What is this, a yacht for ants?" one person said sarcastically. "If you want to see a really flagrant superyacht then go to the National City port; a Russian oligarch's superyacht has been parked there since shortly after the Ukrainian war began (confiscated by the U.S.)."
Another joked, "It'd be a shame if it sank."
Not only do these boats outrage people due to their flagrant extravagance, but also because of the pollution they emit in their use — and disuse.
Discussing the Russian yacht, one person explained, "It actually has most of its crew who continue maintaining it and occasionally take it out in the bay because the engines have to be run every so often."
In reply, another person mused, "Wonder how much gas it's burning every day just to sit in the water doing nothing for no one."
Similar complaints are widespread about the habits and possessions of the ultra-wealthy, from soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo's $73 million private jet to Australian businessman Nick Molnar's latest mansion, which led to the eviction of an entire apartment block.
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Definitely 👍 Their criticisms are warranted. Nonprofit research group Transport & Environment found that just 1% of people cause 50% of all global aviation pollution by flying private. Similarly, that 1% are responsible for twice as much pollution as the poorest 50%, per Greenly.
On the flip side, some wealthy people are looking to lead by example, using their influence to reverse the impact of their peers. For example, Kristine and Doug Tompkins recently made history with the single largest land donation to the public, returning $345 million worth of conserved land back to the governments of Chile and Argentina.
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