In my opinion the sponsored links aren't that big of a deal. The HD info doesn't apear unless you hover over the link, so its not like a popup that constantly annoys. Any news story online, even those truly awful ones about 911 or people getting beheaded in Iraq, has ads.
We all want to keep MO afloat don't we? Imagine the *****ing that would ensue if they had to raise the subscription rate. Its been at 11.94 for the past 3-4 years. I'd don't know of too many periodicals whose price hasn't changed over the same period of time.
Cheers, Tom