Does $NVDA have trenchers? Does $COIN have trenchers? Does $AAPL have trenchers? We need to stop pretending that “trenchers” are a good thing. I don’t mean this about the individuals involved — they are largely just trying to find their place in a broader culture (although there is an element of micro pump-and-dumping). It’s more that needing to desperately shill in ceaseless hand-to-hand combat is a sign that the industry as a whole does not have products worth spreading in their own right. It’s like choosing to live in a world full of pyramid-scheme coffee packets while everyone else is building cafes. Crypto Teams: If we find ourself needing to encourage our community to brute force our product in the trenches, we should take it as clear evidence that our product is not quite there. We need to make it more valuable, easier, more compelling to share. Trenchers: You should look for products and coins that are actually worth spreading, and that you honestly believe in. Not just the smallest cap memecoin that you think you can convince others to buy before you move on to the next. Great things get built when we don’t settle for cheap shortcuts. It’s a culture thing. Trenching being a major part of crypto culture is a sign of dysfunction — of lacking extreme value in our products. If we want to cross the chasm to mainstream users, we need to be honest, and challenge our products and communities to be worth existing.