Laughs best who laughs last.

It seems like the recent news that banks are partnering to experiment with "blockchain technology" took the wind out of Ripple's sails, since being a settlement network for banks was the only interesting thing they had going. Now that banks are going to use their own closed system, Ripple is left searching for a reason to exist. The price is sinking accordingly.

Similarly, the media's attention on blockchain technology (i.e., private or "permissioned" ledgers) is making it clear that there's just very little need for more than 2 or 3 public blockchains, and that they have to have a strong network effect to have any utility and hope for long-term prospects.

Dogecoin is kinda sad in that some people really believed that it had a future, even though it was created specifically as a parody, being purposefully ludicrous and flippant. It was all fun and games until the price charts started steeply rising, and soon a great crowd of speculators assembled, hoping that they were on the launch pad of a new Bitcoin rocket ride. But we're talking about money here, and the rest of the non-internet meme world doesn't have the time or inclination to consider the value of a weird dog-themed cryptocurrency whose proponents communicate primarily in glurge. To outsiders, Bitcoin is weird enough as it is, so Dogecoin never stood a chance.

Bitshares is cool and all, with nifty things like DPOS and pegged assets and whatnot, but in the end it's the network that matters. That's the hard part. Your bells and whistles don't mean anything if nobody uses your coin. Bitshares and NXT and DASH all followed the same trajectory: a fast launch to around a $50M market cap (and higher), and then a slow drift back to earth as no network effect takes hold - no merchants, no media, no trusts, etc.

Litecoin seems to hang in there perhaps because it's just old enough to be entrenched as a secondary cryptocurrency with its own significant network effect. It's interesting to me that a technologically advanced coin such as Monero, with its obvious privacy advantages, can't even come close to eating into Litecoin's value and market share. That is the power of the first-mover advantage and of the network effect.

I can't hate fully on altcoins, though. The do serve as a way for home hobbyists to convert electricity into Bitcoin, people who otherwise might not bother to get into Bitcoin. They're like alternative Bitcoin mining chains.

"A lot of college funds and savings were lost in the crypto craze."

I'd put real money on it being predominantly lunch money, allowance and birthday money from grandma and grandpa, in terms of the amount of vocal fishys alone.

I mean, the chances of you talking to a 13 year old on the internet increase every day.

Why care what either of them think.

They seem to be trolls more than anything.

Fun trolls. Ones that are more concise and persistent, but rabid poo flingers nonetheless.

I honestly wouldn't be surprised if they were the same person.

i can sum it all up for you
altcoin = scam

TL;DR?

Someone call the CEO of Bitcoin and ask why all those bearish news lately.

Demand still the same but bitcoins generated cut in half should boost the price if all else is the same.

Don't be fooled by the quiet and stable price. The next pump will bring it all the way up to at least $18000.
There simply is too much demand.
Put your buy orders now

It will happen.

I'm a long term bull. But in the short to medium term. We are generally going down. Best case (side ways for a while).

Probably hit $133 or so.

Just my smooth-cents.