I agree, this excerpting is totally out of control. Look people, if you don't know enough HTML tags to format the article text, please don't bother. (It is really easy. All you really need to know is the HTML tag <br> or <p> and you are ready).
If you need HTML help, click here.
There is a reason why FreeRepublic is the best place to keep up with the news, not the best place to keep up with a small excerpt of the news.