I think you're being a tad dramatic if we are talking about uBlock Origin. If configured correctly, with the blocklists selected erring a bit on the conservative side, the benefits dramatically outweigh the drawbacks even for the most basic of users.

I am that expert for a very large number of non-expert users. I taught them how to troubleshoot it in case something goes wrong (worst case: click the button to disable it on this page). I've asked them about their experience. There was no breakage and no complaints whatsoever.

I would say it definitely passes the wife test.