Rails 3+ Display Flashes, with option to choose if HTML is escaped or not

application_helper.rb

# extends http://snippets.dzone.com/posts/show/2348
# to include an option for escaping control
# flash[:success] = 'it worked!' will escape (safe) as per Rails 3 security measure, which
#   defaults content_tag escaping to true
# flash[:explicit_success] = 'it <b>worked</b>!' will 

module ApplicationHelper

  FLASH_TYPES = [:error, :warning, :success, :notice]

  def display_flashes(message = 'There were some problems with your submission:')

    explicit = false
    for flash_type in FLASH_TYPES
      if explicit_flash = flash["explicit_#{flash_type}".to_sym]
        explicit = true
        flash.now[flash_type] = explicit_flash
        break
      end
    end

    if flash[:success]
      flash_to_display, level = flash[:success], 'success'
    elsif flash[:notice]
      flash_to_display, level = flash[:notice], 'notice'
    elsif flash[:warning]
      flash_to_display, level = flash[:warning], 'warning'
    elsif flash[:error]
      level = 'error'
      if flash[:error].instance_of? ActiveRecord::Errors
        flash_to_display = message
        flash_to_display << activerecord_error_list(flash[:error])
      else
        flash_to_display = flash[:error]
      end
    else
      return
    end
    content_tag 'div', flash_to_display, { :class => "flash #{level}" }, !explicit
  end

  def activerecord_error_list(errors)
    error_list = '<ul class="error_list">'
    error_list << errors.collect do |e, m|
      "<li>#{e.humanize unless e == "base"} #{m}</li>"
    end.to_s << '</ul>'
    error_list
  end

end