Ok, frankly I find the whole “use it or else!” thing to be kind of silly when it comes to the Oxford comma. If someone uses it, I can understand their meaning. If someone doesn’t, I can understand their meaning. If someone types, “I had eggs, cereal, pancakes and toast,” then I don’t think they ate some sort of bizarre toast/pancake hybrid. Though that would be interesting.
Anyhow, regardless of that, I had this idea the other day, and decided to just roll with it. Enjoy! Or not. It’s your choice!
August 24, 2012 at 5:14 pm
We’ve all seen the examples of when you need the Oxford comma. It’s always some variation of “I’d like to thank my parents, Ayn Rand and God.” Obviously that would benefit from another comma. But I think that rarely does the omission of the Oxford comma lead to confusion or ambiguity. If it’s needed for clarity, use it. If it’s not needed for clarity, what’s the big deal with omitting it? I think that those who demand its use just don’t trust the writer to make the distinction.