Is ‘Yacht’ Still a Dirty Word? Yes.

Fight the stigma. speak out to the powers that be.

Here at Yachts International, “yachts” is our first name, so we are very fond of the word. Others, apparently, are not. In a 2012 congressional hearing on the mundane issue of longshoreman’s insurance for boatyard workers, the problem of negative stereotypes associated with the word “yacht” arose.

Lost in the political posturing over semantics was the core issue of the hearing: not rich yacht owners, but the welfare of middle-class workers. No one in or out of Congress should be against workers, jobs and safety, but the issue of yachts is so touchy that only two of the subcommittee’s nine members dared to show up for the hearing.

The problem is not new. Yacht owners have been a prime target nearly since yachting began. Congress first passed a luxury tax on yachts during World War I, destroying the new industry in its infancy. They did it again 25 years ago, leading directly to an incredible industry-specific unemployment rate estimated at 50 to 90 percent, and reversing a positive balance of foreign trade as yacht buyers simply moved their purchase dollars offshore.

With federal, state and local elections coming up in November and the primaries getting underway, let’s have a bit of fun. Using your favorite Internet search engine, enter the word “yacht.” You will be amazed at the vitriol expended by the Net denizens on that innocent word.

Now, enter “yacht” accompanied by the last name of your favorite political candidate. At the right end of the political spectrum, “Trump yacht” yielded a YouTube clip of The Donald from a 1988 late-night appearance with David Letterman. When asked about his recently acquired and renamed superyacht, Trump Princess, originally built for an international arms dealer, Trump offered, “I purchased it for a business. I have a real problem using it personally because … a mental problem in using it personally. I feel guilty about it, if you want to know the truth.” Egad, the King of Political Incorrectness, suffering the guilt of owning a yacht.

As I continued searching, there were more condemnations of politicians on both sides of the aisle for the guilt of being boat owners. John Kerry and his sailing yacht. Mitt Romney and his power cruiser. George H. W. Bush and his fast sport boat. Even Marco Rubio and his 23-foot center console, referred to as a “luxury” fishing boat.

On the mid-left, Bill and Hillary Clinton’s daughter, Chelsea, showed up, enjoying a yachting vacation off Italy’s island paradise of Sardinia. Oh, the shame!

Farther to the left, “Sanders yacht” yielded a C-SPAN clip of Bernie speaking against a proposed modification of the estate tax law, complete with color charts and a large photo of a beautiful Americanowned superyacht, Limitless, which he used as an illustration to condemn inherited wealth.

It hit close to home for me, not because I inherited wealth—far from it—but because moonlighting man-hours during Limitless’ early development provided the funds that enabled me to establish my company more than 20 years ago. I am just one of hundreds of thousands of middle-class Americans working in the yachting industry who enjoy earning an honest day’s wage made possible by yachts, yachting and yacht owners. And no, Donald, I don’t feel guilty about it.

This summer and fall, as the campaigns heat up and before you vote, ask the candidates where they stand on yachts. After they answer, follow up with the link between yachts and jobs and the economy, not to mention the constitutional right to the pursuit of happiness, and then ask again.

Let us know how that goes.