I don't know. I've never heard of them before and I didn't click on them because of this (though I did read all the oatmeal blog posts). Doesn't sound like there's a reason to click on them if they just copy other sites for which Oatmeal has a link to the originators.
If 90% of everyone who hears about this story hates their guts and only 1% start using their service that's a big win for them. Being a small website is not like being a politician or national brand where you can't afford to alienate large numbers of people.
