Dick,

 

I thought the omission of the comma in a series like these was a journalistic invention, a way to eliminate what could be an unnecessary comma.

 

So the Oxford comma predates the journalistic practice?

 

Marshall

 

 

You might enjoy this cartoon about the "Oxford comma," the controversial comma that precedes the conjunction in a series of three or more items: "eat, drink, and be merry" (as opposed to "eat, drink and be merry"). It is also called the "Harvard comma" and the "serial comma." The cartoon could provoke discussion in a college writing class--perhaps a bit racy for high school.

Similar is the famously ambiguous (and probably apocryphal) book dedication: "To my parents, Ayn Rand and God."

Dick
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