The ethanol in fuels absolutely causes me headaches at work, where I have about 40 pieces of equipment that are 2 stroke, mostly because they don't get ran through the winter months. Once that happens, the carbs are basically trash (too many minute passages and metering passages that can't be gotten to), so you just buy a new one. Sometimes I get lucky and can get by with running some fuel system cleaner through them. I avoid that problem at home by keeping all my 2 stroke stuff in heated environments through the winter months, and periodically starting them up for a minute or two. I tried running them dry before storage, but the residue left from the fuel seems to make the problem worse by doing that. Just my experience.
I haven't really had issues with my cars and truck either. I don't know if it actually helps, but I always run a bit of fuel system cleaner through them at the end and beginning of driving season. I also put a can of fuel line antifreeze in them before storage. I think if you can keep the water/moisture in suspension, it helps minimize corrosion issues. That's just my theory, and I have no way to prove it helps, but I don't seem to have any problems. I also keep the tanks full during storage, which should be a given.
Like Joe mentioned, location and local weather plays a big part in how the fuel reacts. I have an unheated garage in Ohio, so all my cars and truck, including my 8N tractor, sit in cold, with vast temperature variations and very high dew points to contend with throughout the 4-5 month storage season. That's why I go to the extent that I do to avoid problems.