The Inside Assyria Discussion Forum #5

=> FRAUD ALERT!!!: Hermis Aboona Has a Book Too

FRAUD ALERT!!!: Hermis Aboona Has a Book Too
Posted by pancho (Moderator) - Sunday, February 22 2009, 22:21:52 (CET)
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A good friend of ours sent me transcripts of an interview of Hermiz Aboona with some Assyrian college students in Canada in which he discusses his new “book”. A blurb supposedly put out by his “publisher”, Cambria Press, sounds more like he wrote it himself and directed it specifically at Dr Joseph, his work and reputation in a vain attempt to present himself as a competing “scholar” with his own legitimate books. Cambria Press suspiciously parrots all of Aprim and Aboona’s nonsense against Islam and Kurds and the usual suspects...plus which there’s an emphatic claim from Aboona that “research proves” that modern Assyrians really are direct descendants and the rest of it. Included was a link to Cambria Press and I was intrigued to see just what kind of “publishers” they are...or was this just another print-for-hire venture so many “Assyrians” use to lend legitimacy to their claims, and fool the unwary as well as bolster up the unscrupulous.

Cambria’s site is certainly an impressive bit of marketing with several bright and shining faces of “authors” who extol its virtures..most prominently they gush about how royalties are great and get BETTER the more copies that sell...also prominently displayed are claims that authors do NOT pay to have their books published...they do everything for you. It sounded too good to be true...but the thing that really made it all suspect was the constant refrain of “peer review”. It was almost as if they’d been reading criticism that scams such as their’s merely print anything you want to write...and besides, just what is a “peer” and who decides that? No doubt several “peers” of Hitler’s could have been found to vouch for the accuracy of his book.

Googling Cambria I found a link with people questioning who and what this Cambria really is. It’s a very new company. One fellow was asking for more information from readers as he’d received an unsolicited email from them offering to “publish” his doctoral thesis. Were they legitimate, he wanted to know. There were responses as well as some attempts by a flack from Cambria to tout his wares and reassure people that they were legit...but it’s clear that Cambria is just another print-for-hire like all the rest. One that figured out what people most distrust about such businesses and tried to supply clever answers to fool them with.

What’s disconcerting is that Aboona goes along with the fraud. In the interview he says that he studied at Exeter in London...maybe that’s a real university...says he studied Law....but also adds that he “studied Middle East history”...but doesn’t say what courses, taught by whom, or how many, or how he did or what his grades were or if he received a degree in THAT field...we have any number of engineers and doctors and other professionals who write about history without any experience or academic and professional standing in THAT field....then he says he “studied Assyrian history”,,,by now we should all know what that means...it means he read Aprim’s books and now Aprim can “study” Aboona’s.

In the guise of speaking history he mentioned all the usual slanders against Islam, Arabs and Kurds.

Some of the people posting about Cambria pointed out that while they may not charge authors to print their books up front, as most of them do, there is another version of that scam which involves authors “guaranteeing” that a certain number of their books will be bought....usually by canvassing their friends and family. Also the price per book is exceedingly high, around $70.00. Their costs are as nothing compared to a real publisher,,,such as Brill. Brill retails Dr Jospeh’s book for around $140, because it has a limited market among scholars and specialists mostly. Aboona’s book will have even less appeal but for whatever overhead Cambria Press has, meaning a desk, a web page, a couple of men’s magazines and a telephone to call China, they stand to make a substantial profit on their books. I doubt their production values are very high. Naturally, if you “sell” more they’ll give you a bigger percentage, like they would any door to door salesman...but that’s hardly a “royalty” in the real world. There were questions also about what kinds of “peers”...and just what “review” meant.


All “peer” means is someone of equal standing with you. The peer to a PhD in history is another PhD in history...a peer to a taxi driver is another taxi driver. Serious and real publishers know it means that they have people available to them as educated and with degrees in the SAME field and with published books who are competent to judge at least the technical and academic quality of your work. Cambria knows that’s what most people think of when they think of “peer” review, which is why they mention it so often on their site. But what they offer is quite different...it’s bait and switch like any used car lot. Additionally, if you’re a first-time author or new to the field, someone farther along than you are, and not just a peer, is required. The scam Cambria is pulling is that they’ll technically get you a peer...who is about as ignorant and equally hapless as YOU are. Cambria can get from Aboona the names of several “peers” to Aboona...such as Aprim, Jassim, three brick-layers, two taxi drivers and an unemployed engineer, and the rest all cousins....and these will gladly judge Aboona’s book to be accurate, historically sound and even excellent....Aprim is indeed Aboona’s peer...two scam artists peering all over each other.


Cambria is obviously using a new formula for the old game....one person pointed out that legitimate publishers don’t send spam....to which the flack replied that an offer to publish a “serious” book that will get PEER REVIEW is hardly spam...to which the other replied that any unsolicited offer to do BUSINESS is spam...legally, and not as a matter of “opinion”.

All “review” means is to look over. So Aboona can get Aprim to “look over” his book...and it’s been “peer reviewed”.

They’re betting that there are enough exhausted graduate students who hate to see their dissertations gathering dust, or tossed and so they offer to “publish” them...and “offer” them for sale. Sure,,,,there’s a link to Amazon and Random House...why not? Random House will settle for a few pennies in fees a year...doesn’t cost them anything. But the author himself will have to guarantee a certain number of sales...and whom do you think he’s going to approach? A University? A bookstore? You think Barnes and Noble is going to put such a book on its shelves? Hell no. The “author” will beat the bushes scaring up cousins and dumb students to buy his book....if not, he probably has to cough up the money, or....they won’t print the book until he has enough sales to cover the costs...meaning their profit.

No legitimate publisher gets the names of graduating doctoral candidates and sends to them with offers to “publish” with PEER REVIEW too! Not Random House, not Scribners and certainly not Dr Joseph’s publishers.....Publishers don’t go looking for first time authors, or any authors,,,unless they’re well regarded and established. They haven’t the time or funds and besides they’re being besieged all the time and turning people away...hardly have to go LOOKING...drumming up business by sending out spam.

When times get tough all sorts of rats find new ways to swim.

So, Aboona. Nice try. I hope you’ve got lots of cousins.



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