Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 2005/06/07

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Subject: [Leica] Good Writing is Harder Than Good Photography
From: tim at KairosPhoto.com (Timothy Atherton)
Date: Tue Jun 7 13:36:57 2005

> No, omission of the comma before the conjunction is NOT
> permissible (except, of course, in the sense of "anything goes,"
> which may describe "conventional" practice "in the USA" today),
> and for good reason (i.e., as Tina explained, that comma can
> often prevent confusion of meaning).
>
> Art Peterson


Ahh the pedants rise again!

"...but practice varies about putting a comma between the last but one and
the "and" introducing the last. Neither practice is wrong. Those who favour
a comma (a minority, but gaining ground) argue that, since a comma may
sometimes be necessary to prevent ambiguity, there had better be one there
always."

Sir Ernest Gower - The Complete Plain Words  1948 and revised onwards (For
many, the English Strunk and White)


In reply to: Message from arthur.peterson at navy.mil (Peterson, Arthur G CIV SEA 02) ([Leica] Good Writing is Harder Than Good Photography)