Why does punctuation matter?

Punctuation matters because it is part of the English language. The article discussed that for nearly 5,000 years punctuation was non-existent. Although this is a fact, today punctuation is necessary for our language to be the same. When I read a writing that is incorrectly punctuated, I assume the author is unintelligent or uninformed. But realistically, a lack of punctuation is due to laziness. People do not take pride in their work, so they slack of instead of learning the basis of the English language. I do not assume that an author's content is flawed when a paper is incorrectly punctuated, but for me it becomes a distraction. Missing or misplaced commas irritate me, because punctuation matters. Without punctuation, our language would not be the same. Punctuation helps the reader feel the flow to the writing, while it allows the writer to separate his or her thoughts.