There are a few things that a Web site can do that are unforgiveable and should not be forgiven. For example, I just unsubscribed from MacNN (as in CNN, get it?) because on one too many occasions, I followed a pointer there and there was this violently offensive banner ad, flashing multiple colors at a high rate of speed, and saying “If the link above is flashing, you have been selected as a Winner! Claim here.” First of all, this is a lie, I have not been selected as a winner. Secondly, it hurts my eyes. Any Web site that runs this ad will receive no more visits from me, it is way, way, way beyond the bounds of what’s acceptable.
I have had some success masking ads from adservers with my /etc/hosts.
[ongoing]