If you use Firefox, you can install Adblock Plus and the Adblock Plus Element Hiding extentions. That will allow you to hide CSS elements. I used it to block the rating section and now I don't see them at all.

I really want to be able to decide for myself whether a comment is good or bad. There's no way I can just not look at a rating and I find that it gives me a prejudiced opinion of a comment before I've even read it.

Could you please post the rule you are using to do this? Thank you.

theoildrum.com#DIV(class=extra_voting_forms karma_3_big)

Thank You!! I'd give you a good rating but I just can't see them anymore... :)

Thank you! It's gone and I can now ignore it totally regardless of what TOD does with it.

Thanks Mike! I just installed that AdBlock feature and you gave me my first occasion to use it. Wow, I'll have to consider leaving my entire estate to AdBlock's creator.