Like you, I use AdBlock (and Ghostery, too).
I'm not claiming it would have helped you with access to FreeRepublic today. It's simply a way to protect you from malware distributed via advertising aggregators, as well as from other annoying ads.
I didn't see a problem at all, today. And I have the option to "block reported attack sites" turned on.
What setting did I mess up in Firefox now?! LOL!!!
BTW, I concur with you that using AdBlock and Ghostery really makes browsing the web much nicer. Not downloading all the stupid ads, animations and flash b.s. makes things much nicer and faster.