One sentence on this website says:
It is caused chiefly by kleptocratic governments or private interests in league with governments that make market exchange unprofitable, that make investment in producing something to exchange silly, that encourage achieving private wealth at the cost of other people’s wealth instead of by working, saving and inventing (economists know this last by the odd term "rent seeking").
Apparently, the sentence contains three relative clauses introduced by that. Each of them seems to be a restrictive clause.
Many advise against the use of commas before restrictive clauses; however, the rule becomes opaque when multiple restrictive clauses are joined. One may use and to underline the coordination, and it is debatable whether an Oxford comma should be used.
In addition, according to Otto Jespersen, who and which "are often preferred in the second of two coordinated relative clauses", while in American English, most usage manuals recommend against using which with restrictive clauses.
Consequently, there may be five options:
(1) It is caused chiefly by kleptocratic governments or private interests in league with governments that make market exchange unprofitable, that make investment in producing something to exchange silly, that encourage achieving private wealth at the cost of other people’s wealth instead of by working, saving and inventing.
(2) It is caused chiefly by kleptocratic governments or private interests in league with governments that make market exchange unprofitable, that make investment in producing something to exchange silly, and that encourage achieving private wealth at the cost of other people’s wealth instead of by working, saving and inventing.
(3) It is caused chiefly by kleptocratic governments or private interests in league with governments that make market exchange unprofitable, that make investment in producing something to exchange silly and that encourage achieving private wealth at the cost of other people’s wealth instead of by working, saving and inventing.
(4) It is caused chiefly by kleptocratic governments or private interests in league with governments that make market exchange unprofitable, that make investment in producing something to exchange silly, and which encourage achieving private wealth at the cost of other people’s wealth instead of by working, saving and inventing.
(5) It is caused chiefly by kleptocratic governments or private interests in league with governments that make market exchange unprofitable, that make investment in producing something to exchange silly and which encourage achieving private wealth at the cost of other people’s wealth instead of by working, saving and inventing.
Are all of the five options equally acceptable? If not, which one is considered the most objectionable?
