So, from my writing infancy, my High School Teacher Mom taught me never to place a comma before the conjunction in any list of more than 2 things and yet there seems to be quite some debate about it, at least now. From what I've learned, according to the APA, MLA and Chicago MoS, my immediately preceding list is grammatically incorrect (at least for American writing). However, according to the AP, it is correct.
Have these largely considered worthy sources of grammatical information (and the like) always been in discord over this matter? And regardless, wouldn't it be acceptable to choose either format? I certainly hope so, as I far prefer writing lists without the comma before the conjunction to the alternative.
