Comma Wars

When you Google yourself, you don't always unearth sweetness and light! Did you known I was a completely misguided person, and commas between compound predicates are totally okay if you feel like using one?

http://forum.wordreference.com/showthread.php?t=653079

The originator of the short forum thread argues that commas between the two parts of a compound predicate are not only optional but highly recommended in the case of the long-winded sentence.

Which ignores both my highly entertaining words of wisdom re: compound predicates and (more importantly) the standard rules for English grammar and punctuation.

While I do not deny my deliberately ridiculous example sentence isn't an example of great literary style, it was grammatically and typographically correct. In fact, it would never be INCORRECT to omit a comma between the two halves of a compound predicate. There are rare instances when such a comma can clarify the read--even I do it sometimes. But that doesn't mean using a comma is 100% optional and correct.

For more information about commas and compound predicates beyond my own obsessive rantings:

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/handouts/grammar/g_comma.html

http://writing.lifetips.com/cat/56416/commas/

http://kwjwrites.wordpress.com/2008/02/27/the-much-maligned-comma/

http://www.reading.org/styleguide/commas.html

http://grammartips.homestead.com/compoundelements.html

http://wordwise.typepad.com/blog/2008/01/commasutra.html

Of course, you can also find links online where the source claims this comma is optional, but that's a misrepresentation of the truth. It's more that you can argue in favor of it if it really, really clarifies your sentence -- but argue you must because the basic RULE is to omit this particular comma.

JW