Putting a Tip Jar on Squidoo Lenses or Other Free Forums

Lately there has been quite a bit of discussion in various forums about adding a tip jar to a Squidoo lens, a blog, or other places where people are posting information for free use. I have heard both sides of the argument, and have thought it over quite a bit. I thought it was time for me to add my 2 cents to the argument.

I think that there is a time that is appropriate for collecting tips for a service provided. However, I do not think that tips are appropriate on a Squidoo lens or other places that you can post for free. Here is why:

1. You are posting for free, so you do not need to defray your expense.
2. People can get similar free advice from other sources that do not make them feel guilty.
3. If your information is good enough, you will earn money from the post either through directing traffic to something that you are selling, or in the case of a Squidoo lens--through shared earnings if you have enough traffic.
4. Some people will be offended by your tip jar, and will not come back. The continued traffic is more important than the small amount of money you would raise with a tip jar.

I am not in any way opposed to a person having items for sale on their Squidoo lens. But in that case, if the reader is not interested, they just won't buy. They still have contributed to your lens via reading, commenting, and possibly rating it.

What is your opinion?