I’ve long felt that people who use exclamation points in any context (letters, essays, reviews, policy statements) are to be regarded askance. Exclamation points should be used very sparingly, if at all. Their prominent use tends to indicate a lack of education and refinement. The only time it’s cool to use exclamation points is when you’re leaving post-it notes for your spouse or kids or cohabitants, telling them not to forget this or that (“gas up before leaving!”) or not to eat this or that. A post-it note on a carton of eggs, for instance, that you don’t want them to break open and scramble because you bought them and they’re yours — “No!”
