During the past two days I’ve received several emails and noticed a few Facebook posts about the David Publishing Company in Chicago, which offers a new academic journal (Philosophy Study) as a both print and on-line forum for publishing papers. For young scholars of course, this seems like a great opportunity to have papers published in journals that might be a bit more welcoming than the traditional ones run by societies.

I’m all for open access publishing (see: Spontaneous Generations), but I draw the line at journals that have no regard for peer reviews. Antonin Pribetic, lawyer and legal scholar, writes of his experiences with David Publishing, comparing it as a good “bait-and-switch:” we’ll publish your paper, it’s so great there’s no need for peer reviews…oh but don’t forget to pay us to have your paper published!

“We wish we could be your friends,” David Publishing tells us. But I have not time or patience for friends that try to scam me.