Oxford Comma?

[iguana_tonante]

It has nothing to do with pauses. It has to do with the fact that "still do so to this day" is not an independent clause and cannot stand on its own.

If you had said, "and I still do so to this day," the comma would be fine because "I still do so to this day" is an independent clause.

I'm not sure I agree with your analysis, because I would say that, even if the pronoun "I" is implicit in the second part of the sentence, it's still an independent clause: "(I) still do so to this day" is a completely formed proposition. But I studied English as a second language, so my grammar might be completely off.

As for commas and pauses, I was wondering if it was something of a difference between Italian and English, because I was taught that, while a comma might indicate a pause in reading, they are used primarily to separate different clauses in a sentence. Using a comma every time you would take a breath in reading the text aloud would result in broken sentences and ambiguous meaning. Reading a text in your head is not the same of reading a speech aloud, which has it's own rules and symbols to read it clearly, correctly and effectively.

 

[RoJoHen]

No, even if there is an audible pause, you wouldn't use a comma for just that reason.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Also, fwiw, the same rule applies for court cases, e.g. either Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 37 U.S. 483 (1954) or Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 37 U.S. 483 (1954). Once again, I think underline looks better, but I'm sure it was originally just supposed to be italics.

Unless you're doing law review footnotes, then it's just Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, 37 U.S. 483 (1954). Drives me crazy because it looks stupid. If I wrote the Bluebook, cases would be italicized in the footnotes, too.

Aw crap, I have to learn more rules for law review? Oh well, write on competition isn't until the end of May, so I'm not worrying about it just now.

 

[KimMH]

I insert them where I think I would pause in speaking.

If, I, did, that, my, writing, would, look, like, this.

Oooh! A native Shatnerian speaker!

 

[RJDiogenes]

Heh. More of a cultivated thoughtful Professorial affectation.

 

[scotpens]

No, even if there is an audible pause, you wouldn't use a comma for just that reason.

If, you used a comma, every time there was a pause, in speech, anything William Shatner says, would be, FULL of commas!

EDIT: ORSE beat me to it.

 

[BigFoot]

My teacher in college taught us to use the comma, so I use it.

I don't use it in my native language.

 

[Bill Morris]

I get paid to do formal writing and editing, and I opt in favor of the Oxford comma except in names of government agencies, etc. already established without it. The reason is simply to be consistent with those somewhat rare cases that contain compound elements (a, b and c, and d).