WEBVTT - How Did a Comma Decide a Court Case?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of iHeart Radio. Hey brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>Lauren fog Obam here for all of the Facebook posts

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<v Speaker 1>that fail to use correct punctuation, and for all of

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<v Speaker 1>the grammar geeks who insist on pointing out those errors.

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<v Speaker 1>There's some compelling evidence that, well, the geeks are sort

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<v Speaker 1>of right. In a labor dispute in Maine was decided

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<v Speaker 1>based entirely on the lack of an Oxford comma. Before

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<v Speaker 1>we delve into the case, though, let's examine the Oxford comma,

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<v Speaker 1>also known as the serial comma. This punctuation mark is

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<v Speaker 1>the final comma in a list of things. So if

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<v Speaker 1>I were to write I love studying octopuses, comma, fungi comma,

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<v Speaker 1>bacteria comma, and snails, that final comma is the Oxford comma.

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<v Speaker 1>But it's acceptable in the English language to forego that

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<v Speaker 1>final comma. In many cases, your meaning will still be clear,

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<v Speaker 1>But some examples show how confusing leaving it off can

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<v Speaker 1>potentially be. One popular demonstration is the sentence this book

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<v Speaker 1>is dedicated to my parents Comma iron rand and God.

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<v Speaker 1>Without a comma between the last two items in that list,

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<v Speaker 1>it's ambiguous whether the author is thinking three entities, or

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<v Speaker 1>whether they're thinking their parents and then clarifying that their

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<v Speaker 1>parents are iron Rand and God. Thus, an Oxford comma

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<v Speaker 1>can help prevent confusion by separating specific items in a list.

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<v Speaker 1>This comma is called the Oxford comma because it's required

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<v Speaker 1>by the Oxford University Presses Style Guidelines. There are other

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<v Speaker 1>equally respected and used style guides, like the Associated Press

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<v Speaker 1>Style Guide, which prohibit the use of the serial comma.

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<v Speaker 1>Examples of both existing media with news sources preferring a

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<v Speaker 1>pe style and other publications relying on the Oxford comma.

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<v Speaker 1>There are also plenty of passionate debates about the merits

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<v Speaker 1>of each style, elevating the comma to celebrity status among

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<v Speaker 1>Grammarians and the like. And as I said at the top,

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<v Speaker 1>this comma was recently at the center of a labor

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<v Speaker 1>dispute between drivers and the company for whom they worked.

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<v Speaker 1>While the drivers insisted that they deserved over time pay

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<v Speaker 1>for delivering dairy products, the company disagreed, pointing instead to

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<v Speaker 1>a state law that spelled outwork activities that did not

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<v Speaker 1>lead to overtime pay. Quote and follow with me here.

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<v Speaker 1>This is awkward out loud. The canning comma processing, comma preserving,

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<v Speaker 1>comma freezing, comma drying, comma marketing, comma storing comma packing

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<v Speaker 1>for shipment or distribution of agricultural produce, meat and fish products,

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<v Speaker 1>and perishable foods. Okay, The answer the judge determined existed

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<v Speaker 1>in the first sentence in that phrase packing for shipment

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<v Speaker 1>or distribution without an Oxford comma before the word or,

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<v Speaker 1>it could be interpreted to mean that because the drivers

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<v Speaker 1>weren't packing items intended for either shipment or distribution, they

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<v Speaker 1>could be paid over time. But with the comma, then

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<v Speaker 1>the sentence would have contained separate activities. Packing for shipment

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<v Speaker 1>would have in its own distinct activity, as distribution would

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<v Speaker 1>have been. With packing and distribution listed as two separate

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<v Speaker 1>things that didn't warrant over time, the dairy driver's case

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<v Speaker 1>would have been lost, but because of the lack of

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<v Speaker 1>a comma, it wasn't. When labor laws are unclear, the

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<v Speaker 1>justice system is designed to benefit the laborers, said the

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<v Speaker 1>judge who ruled in favor of the dairy drivers. The

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<v Speaker 1>judge wrote, in a statement, for want of a comma,

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<v Speaker 1>we have this case. Today's episode was written by Laurie L.

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<v Speaker 1>Dove and produced by Tyler Clang. Brain Stuff is production

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<v Speaker 1>of I Heart Radios How stuff Works. For more in

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<v Speaker 1>this and lots of other nitpicky topics, be kind to

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