tedster - 6:11 pm on Oct 28, 2010 (gmt 0)

Doesn't it seem strange that Google would allow the map to block adwords results?

I'd say it show that Google changes are not as simplistic as we sometimes think. They tested this change since August. They pretty much know what to expect from it, and they have their eye on a far target in Local Search - this is only one step in that direction.