The bigger the picture, the less glamorous bitcoin seems. Each time it embarks on yet another doomed rally, we are reminded that the supposedly smart money is just as trapped as the hoi polloi. This bitcoin proxy, which reflects best bids and offers in real time across whatever crypto markets still exist, appears bound lower to at least 11,484.  Bitcoin long ago stopped leading the flow of speculative money and now lags it, a lowly slave to the stock market’s ups and downs within the context of the bear market begun last January. If Bertie were to rally to the green line (x=21,774), that would be a gift to bears who’d rather short into strength than weakness.