MSGID: 1:153/716.0 67ce0884   
   REPLY: 2:221/6.0 665ec9b2   
   CHRS: IBMPC 2   
   Hi, Alexander!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:   
      
   AK> The comma before "and" is just an unnecessary thing that   
   AK> provides anything to make the understanding more clear.   
      
             It's a matter of style, not an absolute requirement, and some people   
   recommend using it only when it's needed to avoid confusion:   
      
               Through the window I saw John, a basketball player and a friend of   
               mine.   
      
   What is this friend's name, and is he a basketball player?  I have no idea.  I   
   found the example in Wikipedia... I didn't personally invent it.   
      
      
               I asked for coffee with a breakfast of pancakes, bacon & eggs, hot   
   buttered toast and hash brown potatoes.   
      
      
   At 5WPM I can type an added comma without having to fret about whether someone   
   from ElseWhere will think I buttered the hash browns *after* they were cooked.   
   For me it's easier to use the Oxford comma routinely in such a list than to go   
   into detail about why buttering such things on the plate may not work.   
      
             If Denis asks I'll do the latter, but other folks may not care.  :-Q   
      
      
      
             BTW, here's a joke Dallas found shortly before your message arrived:   
      
               I like cooking my family and my pets.   
                       -- commas save lives   
      
      
      
   AK>  With the same success you can put "and" before every   
   AK>  comma in the list. ;-)   
      
             I suppose you could in many cases.  But as Anton says, in English it   
   is generally considered desirable to avoid unnecessary verbiage.... [chuckle].   
      
      
      
      
   --- timEd/386 1.10.y2k+   
    * Origin: Wits' End, Vancouver CANADA (1:153/716)   
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