TZUTC: -0500   
   MSGID: 2136.englisht@1:2320/105 2ae2c2bc   
   REPLY: 1:153/716.0 67ce0884   
   PID: Synchronet 3.20a-Linux master/acc19483f Apr 26 202 GCC 12.2.0   
   TID: SBBSecho 3.20-Linux master/acc19483f Apr 26 2024 23:04 GCC 12.2.0   
   BBSID: CAPCITY2   
   CHRS: UTF-8 4   
      
   > Hi, Alexander!  Recently you wrote in a message to Ardith Hinton:   
      
   >           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   
      
   >           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)   
      
   When I read Dallas's joke I thought about the phrase:   
   "Love your kids but belt them in the car."   
      
   Hmmm, should  I had put a period after the ending quote mark?   
   Ed   
   --- SBBSecho 3.20-Linux   
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