Wall Observer BTC/USD - Bitcoin price movement tracking & discussion

[JorgeStolfi]

"transfers are anonymous", "cannot be stolen or taxed""there are no fees"

These bogus arguments are still circulating, although the "official bitcoin sources" now seem to avoid them.

"banks and governments cannot touch it"

you must mean something slightly more nuanced and that's not coming across.

Governments can outlaw or regulate Bitcoin as they wish.  Their law enforcement agencies generally have sufficient power and tools to ensure that most citizens will comply with the laws.  See China and India for example.

seriously consider the chances that it may either a) not have much significant impact on [LatAm] economy at all,  or b) just possibly it might even be a net positive outcome for Latin America

I cannot recommend to anyone that they invest money in something which, in my opinion, is unlikely to ever be more than a form of gambling.

As for impact, last year we saw in Brazil the collapse of TelexFree, a rather obvious Ponzi schema, and OGX, an oil company which allegedly misled investors about productivity of its wells.  Each involved the transfer of several billion dollars from the pockets of smart people to those of even smarter people. (The TelexFree operators alone pocketed more than half a billion USD; still unclear how much more.)

[Holliday]

"transfers are anonymous", "cannot be stolen or taxed""there are no fees"

These bogus arguments are still circulating, although the "official bitcoin sources" now seem to avoid them.

Transfers can be anonymous if one takes the proper precautions. Good luck stealing private keys stored in M of N paper wallets. Taxes paid is up to the individual, as with pretty much everything else. Transaction fee's depend on various properties of the transaction (some are free).

"banks and governments cannot touch it"

you must mean something slightly more nuanced and that's not coming across.

Governments can outlaw or regulate Bitcoin as they wish.  Their law enforcement agencies generally have sufficient power and tools to ensure that most citizens will comply with the laws.  See China and India for example.

They can outlaw or regulate Bitcoin as they wish, just like file sharing.

seriously consider the chances that it may either a) not have much significant impact on [LatAm] economy at all,  or b) just possibly it might even be a net positive outcome for Latin America

I cannot recommend to anyone that they invest money in something which, in my opinion, is unlikely to ever be more than a form of gambling.

I wouldn't recommend anyone to invest money into anything. I would gladly share information about the technology.

As for impact, last year we saw in Brazil the collapse of TelexFree, a rather obvious Ponzi schema, and OGX, an oil company which allegedly misled investors about productivity of its wells.  Each involved the transfer of several billion dollars from the pockets of smart people to those of even smarter people. (The TelexFree operators alone pocketed more than half a billion USD; still unclear how much more.)

Sounds like a lot of smart people indeed. Perhaps they should be prudent instead of smart.

[ChartBuddy]

Explanation

[byronbb]

You either only care about the current price or your a dinosaur academic type.

I am a dinosaur academic type.

I understand enough of the protocol to believe that it is technically sound.  My skepticism is about the economic aspects.

It doesn't bother me that people are speculating (basically, gambling) on a market with very uncertain future -- as long as everybody understands the odds and risks.

It does bother me that Bitcoin is being "sold" by some with rather misleading claims, such as "the supply is limited" (true of Bitcoin, but not of cryptocurrencies in general), "transfers are anonymous", "cannot be stolen or taxed",
 "there are no fees", "banks and governments cannot touch it", etc. 

And it bothers me a lot when speculators turn to Latin America as a promising source of Rich Suckers -- who, they hope, will buy those overpriced Bitcoins that no longer find buyers in China, India, Europe and North America.

Not if I can help it.

Even if we grant you these grievances, Bitcoin is better than any currency issued by any government in Latin America.

[Ashitank]

time to test support levels is it ?

[damiano]

time to test support levels is it ?

Yes we're going for a quad bottom

[adamstgBit]

time to test support levels is it ?

yes

and

i'm ready, i was born ready!

[Ashitank]

time to test support levels is it ?

yes

and

i'm ready, i was born ready!

What is your target @ stamp adam ?

[adamstgBit]

time to test support levels is it ?

yes

and

i'm ready, i was born ready!

What is your target @ stamp adam ?

i start buying at 700, i go ape shit at 650

[adamstgBit]

Prepare for glory!

I cant wait!
get ready guys
don't forget to set an alarm!

i'm gana try to get some sleep 

[OldGeek]

Methinks you won't need your alarm set tonight.  Get some rest.  The weekend may see a chance to buy lower.  Or it might provide a nice sell point.

Ya.  I'm 50-50 so let her rip!

[Ashitank]

I guess Buy on rumors , Sell on news about to play out lolz

[ChartBuddy]

Explanation

[HairyMaclairy]

Why would someone convert USD to BTC if they can buy with USD directly?

Specifically, in response to the question, because that person does not live in the US and does not have easy access to USD, but does have BTC.

Nice.  I didn't realize this benefit till you mentioned it.  Sometimes it's also impossible to even pay with certain international credit cards, which is obviously not a problem with bitcoin/coinbase.  

It's not just having USD, it's having a credit card with a US billing address.

I live in Australia. Many Australians open US bank accounts when they are on holiday in the US and keep them stocked with funds so they can access various things that are not available in Australia like Netflix. Dodging geoblocking is a national sport.  

Bitcoin makes this easier.  You don't have to have a USD credit card with a US address.  Third party shipment processors them deal with the issue of the vendor not wanting to ship outside the US for physical goods.  

[pdawg]

[OldGeek]

I guess Buy on rumors , Sell on news about to play out lolz

Humans are the strangest critters on this planet.

Depending on which way their bias runs, the emotions take hold and the result is unpredictable.  At least as far as I can determine.

I suppose that the sheep syndrome, fear of being left behind, causes most of the action on our exchanges.  Rational or not.

[geri]

Prepare for glory!

I cant wait!
get ready guys
don't forget to set an alarm!

i'm gana try to get some sleep 

Why setting up alarms when you can just place your orders and sleep like a baby? :-)

[OldGeek]

img snip

You draw nice charts pdawg.  Do you trade on MtSux or just use them for illustration?

[hyphymikey]

time to test support levels is it ?

yes

and

i'm ready, i was born ready!

What is your target @ stamp adam ?

i start buying at 700, i go ape shit at 650

Thats it? You think we have resistance at 700 to 650?

I was thinking closer to 550.

[notme]

time to test support levels is it ?

yes

and

i'm ready, i was born ready!

What is your target @ stamp adam ?

i start buying at 700, i go ape shit at 650

Thats it? You think we have resistance at 700 to 650?

I was thinking closer to 550.

I wish you luck sir.  Don't miss the train.