Pedants wanted to look for a missing apostrophe

But if I receive a badly written document from someone who should know better, it would affect my opinion of them.  If I were looking for an employee, then someone who could not write a decent letter would be a concern and it would count against them.

Bless the grocer's.  Or should that be grocers', or grocers???

I can understand why they've done it - it does look cleaner but as soon as you think about it, the name stops making sense. This did make me laugh though:

Somebody made the following comment to show how the lack of apostrophe can change the meaning ....

I have run out of food, so I am going to eat the dogs

I have run out of food, so I am going to eat the dogs'

EDIT: I always miss them through typos, or get them in the wrong place anyway ;)

But I seem to recall that the firm which had previously been known as Price, Waterhouse & Co changed its name during World War 2 to Price Waterhouse & Co (dropping the comma).  It has been said (a tad unkindly perhaps) that the saving in printing ink was PW's contribution to the war effort!

David

I'm with Democratus and taxhound on this one. In particular, rightly or wrongly, I mark down, as it were, anyone who doesn't know how to write and spell correctly.  Incidentally, I believe that business writing should not have the use of apostrophes to facilitate contractions - they are acceptable only to indicate possession.  

Finally, why is it pedantic to want to see something done correctly?

... in  "Eats, Shoots and Leaves":

The day after the apostrophe is abolished, a triumphant abolitionist sits down to write, "Goodbye to the Apostrophe: we're not missing you a bit!" and finds that he can't. Abolish the apostrophe and it will be necessary, before the hour is up, to reinvent it.

Dont you know its closed season on apostrophes from 1st December to 31st January, luckily their breeding season ties in nicely with the Tax Return deadline!

it will be full stops next