RE: and/or?

Subject: RE: and/or?
From: "Al Geist" <al -dot- geist -at- geistassociates -dot- com>
To: "'Sarah Bouchier'" <Sarah -dot- Bouchier -at- exony -dot- com>, <nosnivel -at- netvision -dot- net -dot- il>, <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com>
Date: Mon, 25 Jun 2007 08:10:53 -0400

Sarah Boucher wrote:
>>Al Geist wrote:
It's not clear at all. Did the alley cat suffer from disease and
malnourishment, or did the alley cat suffer from disease or
malnourishment?<

It's perfectly clear to me; the writer doesn't know, and has therefore
covered both possibilities.<


Then the sentence should have been rewritten to say "It was unclear whether
the alley cat suffered from disease, or malnourishment, or both." Now it's
clear what the write is trying to say. Check out Stunk and White's "Elements
of Style" (ISBN0-02-418230-3) or Theodore Bernstein's "The Careful Writer"
(ISBN 0-689-70555-7). I'm sure there are numerous other books that
illustrate the ambiguity of "and/or" and why it is considered lazy writing.


Al Geist
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Videos
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office and beautiful note cards for all occasions.)


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Follow-Ups:

References:
Re: and/or?: From: nosnivel -at- netvision -dot- net -dot- il
RE: and/or?: From: Al Geist
RE: and/or?: From: Sarah Bouchier

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