def is_maskmatch_mask(mask):
    """Validate if a mask is a valid IRC mask we support"""

    # author comment: if we ever need regex for more than just
    # this, this statement could be replaced with a regex
    # that is more accurate. /\$~a|\$a:[^ ]+|[^! ]+![^@ ]+@/ or the likes.

    return "$~a" in mask or "$a:" in mask or ("!" in mask and "@" in mask)