This Research Highlight provides context for the report of Gope et al. on experimental and computational probes of the decay of doubly-ionized methanol to H₃⁺ and HCO⁺/COH⁺. The formation of the H₃⁺ ionic product is shown to occur through the agency of a roaming H₂ molecule generated from the carboxyl moiety that undergoes prompt proton transfer from the carbon atom, or, delayed proton transfer from the oxygen atom. This novel method for H₃⁺ formation is contrasted with the conventional ion-molecule pathway, known for over a century, that forms the basis for interstellar molecule formation.