Beyond that, McClure believed Mark Ethan Smith was an interesting problem to observe within The Well's grand experiment. Smith was masterful at reading the system and manipulating it. McClure called her a vibes magician. "We were building a little culture here, and somebody came in and saw how it worked and just played it like an instrument," he recalls. "Just because she was obnoxious and had strange ideas didn't mean that she shouldn't get to play."

There was another consideration as well: Smith was a huge provider of food for thought and was completely, if predictably, outrageous. The more lively the discussion, the more people stayed logged on. Her outbursts were, in short, good for business.