If this has been around for years, then why dont they just fix it? It seems like more of a problem then just saying "dont do anything that would cause that to happen" and you will be fine...
I'm sure that if they fixed it. Not many would complain. OR, make it so you can control it within the template without a mod. What type mod were you refering to?
There's nothing to fix. Long unbroken strings are going to stretch most styles. Unless overflow is set to hidden, in which case you won't be able to view it (like happens with large inline images here).