i think the issue with ads is 100% placement. When i'm on desktop, which is about 50% of the time, I would be 100% okay with ads. They're easy to ignore, especially sidebar ones (I would encourage these to be added, as I don't think there are any).
However, when I'm on mobile, the ads make the site unusable. Between the popups and the lower banners, at least half the screen real estate is taken up. Unforunately, most users are probably on mobile these days and I'm thankful my pub membership turns them off whenever I'm on mobile.
i feel like there's gotta be a happy compromise here!