Unfortunately, much of what is awesome about Google also makes them increasingly terrifying with each passing day
Though none of these points is new, given how few people seem to know them they bear repeating. It’s a shame so many people—and, unfortunately, tech pundits—will fawn all over free stuff without ever considering where the money’s coming from, and what’s being done to get it.
I’m not predicting doom, or suggesting we all run screaming into the night, I’m just saying that when the front-facing (i.e., consumer) portion of a corporation is free, but we know that corporation is making billions and trading stock at $475 a share, we should concern ourselves with the source. This isn’t some paranoid conspiracy, to me it’s just common sense. No one is filling Google’s coffers because they give away stuff.
The Small Wave. 
As a poster on the Cracked article commented, I love the irony of the Google ad at the bottom. If you use Google services (and it’s difficult to find people that don’t), it’s worth reading over http://www.google.com/privacy_faq.html and checking out Google’s Privacy Center – http://www.google.com/privacy.html so you know what’s up.Also, if you have a Google account, check your Dashboard to see what info is stored with that account.They do have an incredible amount of data, and that is a bit scary, but I’d say that they’ve been at least decently transparent about what they collect and what they do with it. What they do with it in the future may be a reason to think more carefully about it, though.
I read/heard somewhere that personal injury attorneys sometimes pay up to $75 for a click on Google AdWords. so sometimes I Google search for things like “asbestos”, “mesothelioma”, “auto injury”, etc., and then click all the lawyer-like AdWord ads. It costs lawyers abunch of money, and, well, it funds Google.