China banned it again.  Twice.  Also, there's no  future in the whole crypto thing; it turns out to be a ponzi scheme after all.  I'm  just buying a few to help out, for auld lang syne.

Chances for a bull trap (or trend reversal) are minimal right now.

Now is really the time to discuss 15m formations, lolololol
Cup&handle on the 1m spotted
reversed head&shoulder on the 3m
......

Chaos will enfold soon!

just type bear flag into google

I raise you a bear flag!

I see a cup and handle pattern forming

but maybe that's just the bull in me

A bearish article about the mood of bitcoin traders in China:
(Possibly already obsolete after the deelopments of the last five minutes):

  比特币一月狂跌三成 甬城多数玩家清仓避险
  http://money.zjol.com.cn/system/2014/04/09/019956348.shtml

The title makes no sense under Google Translate but the body is slightly better.
Note again that "Wright" is "Lite"(coin).

I agree with you completely about the need to skim profits in accordance with whatever scheme is comfortable for the investor.  My skimming will probably be in the form of reallocation of my total investment portfolio.. especially if there are gains in one area, as compared with another)..  So for example, if I had been into BTC in early 2013, then ended up realizing an unexpected 10 times gain, that may have likely triggered me to reallocate the gains into other areas.. .or maybe engaging in some consumption, as you mentioned.

My perspective remains somewhat skewed by the fact that I began investing in BTC in late November 2013.  Accordingly, my BTC portfolio remains in the red, even though I have been buying BTC as the price goes down in order to bring down my average price per BTC - which currently is around $640 - though I started at $1,200. 

When I got into BTC, I realized that there had been a recent and stupendous bull run, so that caused me to plan out my investment over the next several months... rather than sinking in a lump-sum at that particular moment.    Surely, in retrospect, there are probably ways that I could have played trades (or made my buys) in ways that would have caused even a lower average price per BTC.

At the time that I first got into BTC, I was also thinking that my BTC investment would likely run for at least 2 years, absent some catastrophic occurrence that may undermine the fundamentals of BTC with part of my motivation to diversify away from the dollar, since the remainder of my investments (which is a much larger proportion) are tied into the performance of the dollar.  I am sure that many of us in the bitcoin sphere realize the amazingly high level of printing press matters going on with the dollar and also some of the threats of US government shut downs, and those seemingly irresponsible governmental behaviors have caused me considerable concerns about having so much of my total investment dependent upon the ongoing value of the dollar - especially when I am also planning overseas travel.

So,yes, I do NOT have any major problem with floating around in the $450 range for a while - even though it would be a bit more comfortable floating in the black rather than in the red... but I have already banked on the possibility that my total BTC investment could go belly up.. so the worse case scenario would be if it kept going down and sucking out my money.... which I really doubt will occur based on the totality of what is going on with bitcoin and there continue to be lots of interesting value adding developments in the bitcoin sphere.

Just getting a coffee

I meant permabull active traders with open orders. Guys like me staring staring at the graphs, wanting the arrow to move up like the way some rabid sports fans think that their team still has a prayer when the coach has already substituted third string players and the other fans are starting to leave.

I think that it is a different story if an investor was in a position to cash out part of his stash in December 2013.. or had been analyzing what to do during that period mid-to-late 2013 period.  So for example if anyone got into BTC in any kind of heavy way before mid-October 2013, the quick bubble may have likely caused a considerable incentive to cash out part of the appreciation - yet many may have just remained "in for the long term."

Surely the January, February and March performance seemed to draw considerations that BTC prices would remain at higher than $450s resting price points.  Of course, hindsight is 20/20, but a very large majority of those would have pegged a much higher resting point than our current mid$400s.

And, i suppose, I could be just inviting some bears to chime in to say, I told you so regarding this current mid$400s price range....

As I already stated, I doubt that we are going to be hanging around here for too long.. and probably a bit higher would be more in line with current fundamentals or at least the probability of going up seems greater than going down.. despite current low volume..

Also, even though we know that graphs can be constructed to show that $450-ish is a good stable price point, i think that BTC prices are a considerable bargain at the moment and I am sure that quite a bit.. little by little is being snatched up at these price points by the future elite (to coin a phrase from another bitcointalk thread)

Does anyone else get the feeling like the dread is starting to sink into the last of the permabulls? I know that feeling. Maybe it's projection, buy I can almost hear the hope dying.

who would have even guessed that we may be floating in the mid-$450s price territory for so long.  

No legit target during few years. Fuck it, I go away.

If they don't really understand Bitcoin, then they don't know that banning bank deposits will drive it underground. You can't have it both ways. We do know that they banned another payment system that uses QR codes. Small exchanges are shutting down specifically citing this regulation. My point is only that there is uncertainty and markets hate uncertainty. The PBoC had weeks now to clarify and chose not to, even though price has fallen significantly.

They can still buy using bank deposits, just not with money via 3rd parties. Similarly okpay, dwolla and aurumxchange were all stamped on last year by regulators in the West.

I'm not so sure. The rumor is that bank deposits will be stopped also. I'm selling the bad rumor and buying the bad news. Until there is clarity one way or another, the uncertainty will weigh on the market.

huobi trying to come thru it

so close..

I made $400 today locked in. That's not "if the market holds". That's USD. and if the market keeps going up, I'll lock in more. I hope it does. I will have tens of thousands of dollars to jump back on the gravy train if a clear reversal materializes.

Nice try!