Roguecons

General Category => Sneak Peek => Topic started by: Pigboy on January 06, 2020, 04:09:42 AM

Title: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: Pigboy on January 06, 2020, 04:09:42 AM

Way back in the day in Cambodia, a bounty of 1 million USD was offered for the head of Dick Marcinko. Today, in the currency of choice that 1 Million USD would seemingly be more than the entire economy of Cambodia @ 4115226337.45. OK, not really, as the Cambodian GDP is 22.16 Billion USD, but it would take up 2.5%. These are all in today's dollars, which I suspect at the time would have been a lot more in USD value with the exchange rates at the time.

The 50,000 SYP (Piastre) offered by Vietnam is a slightly different conversion that I have not calculated yet.

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: R1nk03 on January 06, 2020, 05:08:55 AM

I didn't know  Cambodia had a bounty on Dick Marcinko's head, as he worked as an attaché in Cambodia. I think in the latter years of the Vietnam war, in the early 70's if memory is correct.

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: R1nk03 on January 06, 2020, 05:27:24 AM

I think todays rate on piasters is approx. $1.25USD

BTW you reading Dick Marcinko's first book again? I am, I'm on page 222, takin it slow on it, catching things I missed the first time, which is nice.

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: R1nk03 on January 06, 2020, 05:31:00 AM

The first bounty on Marcinko's head was in 1967 and this is what was said:

"Award of 50,000 piasters to anyone who could kill First Lieutenant Demo Dick Marcinko, a gray-faced killer who had brought death and trouble to the Chau Doc Province during the lunar New year." This was in Chau Doc.

The other was in Ke Sach and this is what It said:

Ke Sach in mid May "Award of 10,000 piasters to anyone who couold kil the leader of the secret blue-eye killer's party that massacred many families [here] during the United Nations day of 2, January 1968."

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: R1nk03 on January 06, 2020, 05:38:17 AM

Who knows, this might help on the exchange rates of back then to now (1967 - 1968 to today) Even tho I don't like Wikipedia its a step in the right direction

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Indochinese_piastre

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: Pigboy on January 09, 2020, 05:34:43 PM

When we were on the cruise in 1997 there were a couple conversations that happened, one of them revealed a bit more than he previously covered.

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: R1nk03 on January 09, 2020, 06:00:33 PM

So, there was a lot Higher reward than what he stated in his book then?

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: R1nk03 on January 09, 2020, 06:04:28 PM

A question, did those bounties on his head die with the end of the war?

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: R1nk03 on January 10, 2020, 11:07:16 PM

A question, why would he downplay this for?

Also, he must have been extremely effective, more so than he stated in his book.

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: Pigboy on January 11, 2020, 05:42:51 AM

I don't believe he downplayed anything, but not revealing every detail of his life in and out of the team's was, in my opinion, a brilliant move. Plus, at the time, I suspect there were certain topics and actions still covered by security restrictions.

Title: Re: An interesting currency conversion.
Post by: R1nk03 on January 11, 2020, 01:37:16 PM

Thank you for that.