What? All you need to do is resubmit the request without a Referer header. For me, using Firefox, this meant clicking in the address bar, changing nothing, and hitting enter.
That's hardly "no ability to do anything about it".
That's hardly "no ability to do anything about it".
Consider it like this:
1. I think, "oh, that looks relevant, let me open that link".
2. I get a screenful of objections to HN moderation.
3. I shrug and close the tab.
I also doubt they really care whether or not any particular HN reader has a positive or negative opinion of them.
It was called Startup News at the beginning. Of course, it's gonna be interested in money and money making. Duh.