Bitcoin finally crashed! And then it didn't. After two weeks in the spotlight, the anonymous techno-libertarian dweeb-currency rocketed past $250 yesterday—only to lose more than half its value over just a few hours today. Only to rally back up to around $200 again, just over the last hour or so. That's millions of dollars. Traded on a Magic: the Gathering site.

Or some of it, anyway. Mt.Gox, once the foremost place on the internet for exchanging collectible fantasy game cards, is now the most popular Bitcoin exchange on the internet. Today, it was trading at as low as $105, and quick nervy day traders likely made a mint: it's back up to near $200.

Of course, for most real Bitcoin enthusiasts—not just the Russians and Cypriots and schemers who are said to be putting all their money into it—this was to be expected. Like "the man who gave his life to Bitcoin," they're in it for the long haul—the promise of an encrypted, anonymous future economy, unencumbered by messy things like "a central bank" or "stability"—and not just the get-rich-quick possibilities of an insanely volatile market.

So as the charts (this one via Business Insider) began to look like this—

—the subreddit /r/bitcoin responded with encouragement. "HOLD SPARTANS!," a photoshopped image from the 300, has been the top post on the board all day. (For much of the day, the second most popular link was "Are We the First Winery in the US Accepting Bitcoin? Yes. (Why We're Doing This, and Are We crazy?)").

The fantastic Twitter account @Bitcoin_TXT relayed quotes from the Bitcoin communities on Reddit and elsewhere. Bitcoiners were generally in a conspiratorial mood:

It might be the FED selling his massive amounts of coins to later use the press to criminalize it. — bitcoin.txt (@bitcoin_txt) April 10, 2013

ALL BTC services are under attack by the mob (the banksters) that's what I think. But we will win! — bitcoin.txt (@bitcoin_txt) April 10, 2013

this is a coordinated DDoS attack driven by the gov in order to create panic and decrease trust in BTC — bitcoin.txt (@bitcoin_txt) April 10, 2013

And there was some infighting:

I must say, it's not easy to take financial criticism from a user named niggertown — bitcoin.txt (@bitcoin_txt) April 10, 2013

This is real money you piece of cunt, and some people need it to live. Does that make you feel good, you fucking lowlife? — bitcoin.txt (@bitcoin_txt) April 10, 2013

But generally, everyone could agree on one thing: