The Case Against The Em Dash...

[RandomAnthony]

http://www.slate.com/id/2295413/

Comments, grammar nerds?

[[deleted user]]

They can take away my em dash when they pry it out of my cold, dead hand.

[Jackie "the Librarian"]

For someone making a case against em dashes, she sure uses a LOT of them.
I like them. I always have. They're like less emphatic parentheses.

[Sally, la reina]

country of lazy ass grammarians, we are. JEebus.

"people use the em dash because "they know you can't use it wrongly—which for a punctuation mark, is an uncommon virtue.""

Come ON.

[janine]

Barb wrote: "I think they're dashing, and I love them."

That, as long as they're not overused.

[Janice]

I like dashes - and dots.....

[Jammies]

Ms. Malone, you may have my em dash when you can pry it from my cold, dead keyboard.

[Heidi]

Ms. Malone, I got yer em dash. Right. Here.

–

Barb wrote: "I think they're dashing, and I love them."

Also, Mr. Darcy was dashing and indubitably dreamy.

[Jonathan]

The em dash is a useful tool but one that is probably best used sparingly in writing for publication. If an editor sees a text with em dashes in every sentence, he or she would probably try to turn some of the dashes into commas or else recast certain phrases to make the dashes unnecessary. The dashes themselves wouldn't be seen as a sign of bad or unprofessional writing. But overuse of parentheses probably would be. And use of ellipsis points for any purpose except abridging a quotation would make a bad impression too.

For casual writing--for instance, in emails or on TC--I really wouldn't worry about any of this. Dashes, parentheses, ellipsis points, and a certain amount of nonstandard grammar can give casual writing a friendly, accessible, conversational tone, which can be just perfect in the right circumstances...

[Stacia (the 2010 club)]

Jackie "the Librarian" wrote: "For someone making a case against em dashes, she sure uses a LOT of them.
I like them. I always have. They're like less emphatic parentheses."

Bitch better not mess with my parentheses. Not you, Jackie.

[[deleted user]]

There are a lot of em dashes in the book I'm currently reading. If it is good enough for Oscar Wilde -- who am I to argue.

[janine]

I used an em dash today in a work e-mail.

[Janice]

Careful Janine. People have been fired for less.

[Jammies]

Apparently The Mad Bomber of New York used em dashes rather than commas.

[Annette]

I love them in speech (ellipses too) as it seems to work for less formal pauses and breaks.

[Kevin]

http://www.slate.com/id/2293056/

another interesting article for those of you care about grammar and such