I've learned what I know from people MUCH better educated than I; engineers, mechanics and such.... they own cars too.
There are bigger things to nipick though, like the popular PCV delete which is also a greatly ignorant move... then there's the charcoal canister.... oh, don't get me started...
At any rate, the point of it is that all of these systems have their benefits and unless you're working to a VERY specific end you really should work to ensure they're operating properly. If they're operating properly they'll actually help, if not, well THEN you might see gains from their removal, but it's the same gain you'd generally see from just fixing it (on top of the positive side effects).