March 2004 Archives

There are many candidates for the worst punctuation ever, but rarely is it actually dangerous. After the Second World War, Lord Haw-Haw, who had made propaganda broadcasts for the Nazis, was hanged because of a comma, or so the story goes.

However, the Metroplitan Police have managed to plumb new depths with bad punctuation and produce advice that tells us to do the opposite of what they want us to do and, if we were to follow what they actually wrote, we could end up getting killed. They have put up posters in London Underground stations informing us of what to do if we see an unattended package (a bag or something that has been left):

Don't touch, check with other passengers, inform station staff or dial 999.