I'm not sure why Google's results might be said to be /useless/? There's definitely an interesting argument to be made about Google using a monopolistic position in search to cross-promote some of their other products (local, ads, maps), but the OP's examples seem to show results that quite likely exactly what the user would have been searching for.

I guess what I'm saying is that pure organic search isn't necessarily the optimal way for a user to find the information they're looking for.