Is there a legitimate discussion to be had about whether or not Google sometimes acts mysteriously, with their motivations completely unclear to anyone outside the company and likely frustrating to third parties who wind up getting slammed by them? Sure. But the amount of bad actors out there in the online advertising space, those who are manipulating the system of Google and others to benefit in violation of best practics sometimes forces them to be more draconian than they otherwise would have.

I’m not saying Google is completely in the right in the story outlined by the NYT. But the actions they’ve taken are largely a response to user complaints and problems and they need to be understood in that light.