Wilburforce - 11:54 pm on Jan 6, 2013 (gmt 0)

The results they generate today aren't by accident

It isn't possible for Google to anticipate every possible search term and every possible searcher's intention. Some of the results of recent changes cannot have been intended, and in that sense are accidental.

they are WAY ahead of where most people think they are

They are not standing still and allowing competing forces to overtake them. That doesn't make them immune from mistakes, or mean that improved relevance from their perspective is the same thing as improved relevance from mine. My experience lately is that it is harder from me to find what I am looking for in Google results than it used to be. From my point of view, throwing up a load of synonyms instead of exact matches is an example of being smart when it isn't necessary. I am looking for a spade, not a shovel. OK, they are ahead of me in getting me to think about shovels, but in reality it simply distracts me from spades.