IRC is better than discord because you have to pass an intelligence test to be able to participate. I don't want to see riffraff in there. however, self-custody bitcoin should not be gated behind an intelligence test. it should be accessible to everyone regardless of skill level. it is a bad thing that most bitcoin users go through a custodian, and that being actually sovereign on lightning requires both technical knowledge and an indeterminate number of layer 1 transactions. even if every bitcoin enthusiast in the world could become a computer expert, there is still not enough room on layer 1 for channel management transactions needed to keep all the users sovereign. it is better to pursue a different design that will make self-custody more accessible.