With the update to WordPress 2.7.1 (the blogging template I use for this blog), we now seem to have odd-bodkin question marks (�) sprinkled throughout the posts.  I’ve vacuumed them off the stuff currently on the home page, and will slowly (slowly!) vacuum them off the posts I think someone may someday look at, if they’re wandering around the LD archives.  Since I have not yet, and am likely to not ever manage to vacuum up the earlier (2.01 to 2.5.1- induced) heiroglyphics outbreak, I fear these irritating things are here to stay.  Please accept my apologies for confusing you even more than I have to.
I’m not sure this will help but… did you try changing the charset?
Check in wp-conig.php
if it says this:
define(‘DB_CHARSET’, ‘utf8’);
if it does change it to
define(‘DB_CHARSET’, ”);
or maybe it’s the other way around…
I was going to suggest what willowsbrain said. I have to do that every time I upgrade…which is why I haven’t upgraded again. ha ha.