Grammar question

[THE FROG]

2 commas.

[ToddG]

Please pick up ham, turkey, and bread from the store.

This is correct.

Please pick up ham, turkey and bread from the store.

This is the way newspaper reporters, Newsweek editors, and other Satan-worshippers write it.

[CoryCop25]

I was taught in school that when using the word AND, it is not necessary to add the comma. I went to catholic school so God must have told them so. Only on M4C would we have a thread dedicated to commas! I LOVE IT!!!

[bulbvivid]

Eats, Shoots and Leaves

You never know when a panda's gonna show up for a sandwich.

[ToddG]

I was taught in school that when using the word AND, it is not necessary to add the comma. I went to catholic school so God must have told them so.

Yeah, but they also told you that you'd go blind if you touched yourself, and since you're reading M4C I think you've exhaustively disproved that one.

[Erik 1]

Although I have been forced to renounce Satan and his ways at more than one baptism, I prefer one comma except in cases where the lack of a comma would lead to ambiguity (à la, those poor horses mentioned above).

[CoryCop25]

Yeah, but they also told you that you'd go blind if you touched yourself, and since you're reading M4C I think you've exhaustively disproved that one.

My computer screen is in brail just like the drive up ATM.

[decodeddiesel]

This is perhaps the most epic thread in the history of M4C.

Capt. Kirk....pure gold!

Oh and according to the MLA handbook (6th ed.) I have, it would advocate the use of the serial comma in this situation.

[Irish]

i'd go with how captain kirk would say it:
Please. Pick up...ham. Turkey. And bread. Fromthestore.

Awesome! I would typically only use one comma in the original example.

[Left Sig]

When I was in grade school in the 80's I was taught that no comma before the and was the old way, and a comma before the and was the new way, and preferable. Now things are going back to the old way.

I prefer the comma before the and because it eliminates any chance of ambiguity. Newspapers don't like it because some bean counter probably figured out that not using the comma saved a few dollars on ink each year.

But arguing this fine point is the least of my criticisms of the poor level of writing by many people. I've worked with managers two levels up from me who can't or won't use complete sentences. It's always "random thought...random thought...dumb idea...dumb question..." strung together with elipses. I once had a manager who's writing was so poor I had trouble understanding what he really mean - it could be interpreted several different ways.