All I can think is Schoolhouse Rock: "Interjections show excitement or emotion and are generally set apart from a sentence by an exclamation point or by a comma if the feeling's not as strong"
Exactly! Stop waffling, Randall Munroe and Ryan North. Pick a side: either it's worth an exclamation point or it only needs a comma.
Of course it now occurs to me that the semicolon is ALL ABOUT waffling. Normally, it keeps you from having to choose between using a period or a comma/conjunction combination.
Which is why I use em dashes.
I can agree that they are correct, but why not treat them as interjections that don't function as independent clauses and not make your sentence look funny? What value is added?
See? To debate punctuation makes our speaking English good. Or, is fun.
Of course it now occurs to me that the semicolon is ALL ABOUT waffling. Normally, it keeps you from having to choose from using a period or a comma/conjunction combination.
Them's fightin' words, mister.
t narrows eyes, moves hand toward gun holster
t remembers anti-gun beliefs
t narrows eyes emphatically
Of course it now occurs to me that the semicolon is ALL ABOUT waffling.
Dude, now Teppy's gonna punch you in the neck!
eta; Potential Teppy violence x-post....
Hey, I love the semicolon! But you've got to admit, it's a waffly sort of guy.
The semi-colon is not waffly at all. When used properly, it is used where neither a period nor a comma would be quite right; the semi-colon is the ONLY appropriate choice in that context. Which makes it not at all waffly. The anti-waffle, if you will.
I really need to get me a semi-colon t-shirt.
