The world’s most famous detective must figure out how a priceless gem ended up in a white goose

By Janice Harayda

Great holiday crime stories are rare. Set a murder mystery against the backdrop of a celebration of the birth of Christ and you risk accusations of trivializing the season or playing it for heavy irony. And who wants to be reminded that the wreath-draped mall teems with pickpockets or that burglars may strike after we leave for the airport?

Part of the genius of “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle” is that it implicitly acknowledges such realities. Arthur Conan Doyle begins this Sherlock Holmes tale on the second morning after Christmas. It’s a holiday story without the freight it would carry if it took place two days earlier. And it has a plot perfectly attuned to the season. Holmes has the benign Watson by his side as usual. But he doesn’t face his arch-foe, Moriarty, or a killer armed with a gun or a trained swamp adder as in “The Dancing Men” or “The Speckled Band.” He needs only to find out why a priceless gem – the blue carbuncle – turned up in the gullet of a Christmas goose abandoned on a London street.

Of course, it isn’t that simple. But Holmes resolves the case, in fewer than a dozen pages, with panache and in a spirit of holiday generosity. You could probably read “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle” aloud in 20 minutes or so as a yule log burns. And it appeals to nearly all ages – not just to adults but to children who need more dramatic fare than The Polar Express.

Part of the allure all the Sherlock Holmes tales is that, while their stories are exciting, Holmes is imperturbable. “My name is Sherlock Holmes,” he tells a suspect in “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle.” “It is my business to know what other people don’t know.” How nice that, in this case, he knows how to set the right tone – in a secular if not religious sense – for the season.

Furthermore: You can download “The Adventure of the Blue Carbuncle” for free at the online Classic Literature Library, which makes available at no cost books in the public domain. At top left is the Audio CD “The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes — The Blue Carbuncle” (Mitso Media, 2006), read by James Alexander.

This review first appeared on this site on Dec. 19, 2007.

One-Minute Book Reviews is for people who like to read but dislike hype and review inflation.

© 2009 Janice Harayda. All rights reserved.

www.janiceharayda.com

This is a busy time of year with Christmas just barely a week away, and I haven’t been reading as much as normal. I apologize for being late with the Monday Book Review this week, but I haven’t had time to finish my latest novel. So, yesterday afternoon, instead of reviewing, I baked Christmas cookies for a party at work tomorrow, while thinking about what books I have read in the relatively recent past that might be interesting to our readers. Hopefully, this post will be sufficiently insightful as to overcome the delay.

For a long time, I had wanted to read The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith. The book had been on my shelf for years, but I buy too many books to read them all, and each time I finished one book and picked up another, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency moved further and further down my TBR (To Be Read list). Finally this past spring, HBO advertised a new series would premiere based upon the series of Ladies’ Detective Agency books. The commercials looked good, and I was quite interested in the series, except usually, I prefer to read a book BEFORE I see the story brought to life under someone else’s vision. Like most people, I am almost always disappointed by movie adaptations of beloved stories, since the director’s vision very rarely matches my own.

Image from HBO.com

I didn’t get a chance to read the books before the series started, but decided to watch anyway. I am so glad I did too, because the shows were extremely well done. The novels are set in Botswana, and according to the HBO website, this is the first series to be filmed entirely on location there. The scenery was absolutely beautiful: stunning landscapes and truly charming little villages. The actors were great and the stories were well plotted and executed. I fell in love with Mama Ramotswe’s friends and community, and cheered for her when she solved a case. I was genuinely disappointed when the season ended. Then I realized, I could have more of Precious and her friends by finally reading the books.

I will admit, I was a little worried that the HBO series would seem less impressive once I had read the novels. However, I found that as I read, I was picturing and hearing the voices of the actors from the show in my head, and it was a perfect fit. I cannot say that I would have been as satisfied had I read first, and watched second, but as it was, the books and shows went together flawlessly.

Unfortunately, the HBO show was developed (and the Pilot episode directed) by Anthony Minghella (Cold Mountain), who died before the series finally premiered. I do not know if HBO will continue the series, and as of now, it does not seem they will, but I hope there will be more to look forward to. In the meantime, I will be reading the novels; there are at least 10 so far!

What is it like to be a narcotics officer in the LA police department? Hopefully nothing like this.

“Training Day” opens with rookie cop Jake Hoyt (Ethan Hawke) prepping for his first day as a narcotics police officer. Hoyt is told by his new partner to meet him at a coffee shop for his orientation. Hoyt arrives at the coffee shop to meet Alonzo Harris (Denzel Washington).

From the minute Hoyt engages Harris in a polite conversation he knows this wont be a typical assignment. Harris becomes agitated and says since you have obviously spoiled my morning paper now you have to entertain me.

Their conversation in the coffee shop is a foreshadowing of what Hoyt’s first day on the job is going to be. As Hoyt becomes more and more familiar with his new partner he quickly realizes that to be a narcotics officer you have to be as ruthless and as cutthroat as the dealers themselves. It also seems that Alonzo has no problem absorbing that part of the job.

Can Hoyt become what Alonzo wants him to be? Does he have the ability to flush his morals down the toilet of corruption? Well that’s what his “training day” is all about. Is he the wolf or the sheep?

This isn’t your typical Denzel Washington film but it his performance that is the showcase of the piece. From the moment his character is introduced we know this guy is a “bad-ass”. But because Washington is playing the role I think we like him way past where we probably should.

If a different actor had played Alonzo I do believe his likeability would have evaporated 5 minutes after leaving the coffee shop. This I see could be a flaw in the film’s script. The film, screenwriter and director have a lot to be thankful for when casting Washington as Alonzo.

I liked Hawke’s turn as action hero and he could have the appeal of a Keanu Reeves given the proper project. In this film he is so over-powered by Washington he doesn’t really have the ability to shine. He is sort of like what Michael Keaton was to Jack Nicholson’s Joker. Denzel is this film’s Joker. It’s basically where the villain’s acting power makes the hero look like pudding.

I liked how the film is contained in a Hollywood day, how the corruption plays with the rookie, the hidden plot boiling beneath Alonzo, and the film’s quick pacing. I however had problems with the film’s layout; some aspects of plot revelation and situations that made me think, “Who are these guys again?”

When this film finished I did wonder if Hollywood could make a film such as this but reverse the race roles. We have seen this kind of story in films like “Bad Company”, “Deep Cover” and “In Too Deep”.

In a lot of circumstances these films were better because they didn’t really question the race issue. I do believe this film does question it on some levels.

Why does it have to be a black neighborhood that is corrupt? Why can’t we have a film where a black detective has to infiltrate a white neighborhood or even an ivy-league university?

There is corruption there too you know. The only film that comes to mind that does reverse the race roles is “Beverly Hills Cop” and it was a comedy. Come on Hollywood let’s see a film that really blurs the racial line. Why not give us a story like this but with a new racial twist?

3.5 out of 5

So Says the Soothsayer.

Written: September 23, 2001

Warning: new Code Geass may not contain any of these characters.

This weekend, I spent my time testing out new combos in Baldr Sky Dive2 and watching football. The anime world, however, was busy trying to make up for a relatively light anime slate in this winter season by announcing 2010 anime in bunches.

This weekend brought us a bunch of announcements:

- A new Code Geass multimedia project, crossing anime, manga, music, and more.
- Yojou-han Shinwa Taikei, an adaptation of a college-life novel by Morimi Tomihiko.
- Giant Killing, a soccer manga getting an anime adaptation in time for the World Cup.
- Yondemasu, Azazel-san, a story about a magical detective and the demons he enlists to solve mysteries.
- Shinrei Tantei Yakumo, another supernatural detective story, with ghosts instead of demons.
- Starry Sky, yet another “turn inanimate objects into impossibly pretty boys” project a la Hetalia and Miracle Train.
- Moyashimon, the live action drama (yes, really).

Most of these won’t come around until Summer 2010 at least, with a few of these projects designated for Fall 2010, so barely any details are out about these projects. The Code Geass announcement is a bit more immediate and contains more details than the rest of these, so I’ll cover it later today.

An anthology of Sherlock Holmes stories (Point 1). Written by authors like Neil Gaiman, Laurie King, Stephan King, Naomi Novik, Stephan Baxter (Points 2, 3, 4, and so on.) So, how many more points does a book like “The Improbable Adventures of Sherlock Holmes ”need to be “pick up right now”?

The central idea of the anthology is one single line, perhaps the most famous of Holmes’ quotes (no, not that one. An actual quote from canon). And from that, the authors have gone ahead and given their own meaning to the words “improbable” and “impossible”.

Some have gone the traditional route, the seemingly supernatural tales (like “The Sussex Vampire” from canon) – murders in empty rooms sealed from inside, a child vanishing from a house, the man who stepped back into his house to collect his umbrella and was never seen again. Some have gone ahead with the traditional meaning of improbable, the true supernatural mysteries. This contains ancient curses, mummies, and even few creatures and themes which have escaped from Lovecroftian collection.

Then there are the science fiction stories, or should I say, mysteries set in science fiction genre. And last but not the least, are those which seem improbable, simple because they describe the triumphs of people who are often (rightfully, in most cases) overshadowed by Holmes.

Like the setting, the themes also cover a whole gamut of genres. There are your standard mysteries, the classic who-done-its. There are horror and thriller stories, with your standard spooks and ghouls and other wee-little beesties. And then there are some stories which would be better described as narratives, since they contain no big mystery but just nice story.

Some highlights for me in the collection were Neil Gaiman’s take (I have a feeling I have read it before) on “The Study in Scarlet”, the curious coincidence of both the Kings putting Holmes in the background, and Robert J. Sawyer’s (whose novel “Flashforward” is on TV now) take and solution of the real-life events surrounding “The Final Problem” and “The Empty House”.

I have had a long history with Holmes pastiches. I started out not liking anything not strictly according to to canon, but over the years, those separate viewpoints have yielded quite a few gems. This anthology is one of them. If you are a Holmes’ fan, pick it up without fail. If you are not a Holmes’ fan, still pick it up, and then we will discuss why you are not a Holmes’ fan.

Quote of the Day:

How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?

- Sherlock Holmes, The Sign of Four

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Check out other Holmes pastiches, and other detective stories.

David Whittaker Stepped Down

David Whittaker was arrested in October, by detectives investigating alleged offences under legislation in the Sexual Offences Act.

The 69-year-old stood down from the ruling Conservative group due to the on-going investigation.

Mr Whittaker – who’s the county councillor for Newport West - will report back to police in February.

NY: Knopf, 2000.

This is a rather odd novel, set in an off-kilter world and filled with decidedly strange people. Christopher Banks, born (apparently) around 1905 in Shanghai, grows up in the insular International Settlement, his best friend being a likewise isolated Japanese boy named Akira. Christopher — “Puffin” to his parents — lives almost entirely in the fantasy play world he and Akira invent — especially the detection scenarios they act out after his parents disappear. Indeed, he never really stops playing those games. He reaches maturity back in England and in the ‘30s he becomes a noted consulting detective himself — or so he says, because all we ever get are incomplete, sidelong references to his cases. But this seems to be a world in which detectives are famous people, carrying the weight of the preservation of civilization on their shoulders. And as the Japanese invasion of China gets under way, Banks feels the need to return to Shanghai to “solve” the crisis — as well as to rescue his parents, whom he assumes are still alive. What’s more, everyone else also seems to think these are both splendid projects, too. One begins to see Banks as a thoroughly unreliable narrator and as the story progressed I kept waiting for subtle indications that he was more than a little nuts, that he was actually tucked away in a rubber room somewhere, but it never happened. Then, as he stumbles about in the war zone, we see that he is indeed living in reality — some reality, anyway. The denouement, which is the only part of the book that seems to take place in the real world, is ultimately unsatisfactory. The author seems to be tweaking the reader’s nose: “Aha, gotcha! It’s not a fantasy or alternate reality novel after all!” I’ve enjoyed most of Ishiguro’s novels, and I certainly appreciate his talents, but this is far from his best effort.

Killing black women in south Los Angeles

In a case that is reminiscent of the police oversight in Cleveland, by being remise in their investigation of a series of missing women reports in the same neighborhood for over 15 years, they only recently were able to arrest convicted rapist Anthony Sowell for the killings.

http://wp.me/pEzT2-hC

As in the Cleveland serial killer case, the perpetrator was able to get away with his murderous rampages for several years, due to the fact that police departments around the country continue to fail to follow-up and thoroughly investigate the murders, or the missing case reports, of black women that they deem to be street trash.

In Los Angeles, we see that black women are treated like dirt, as compared to the way a white women would be assisted, and if they go missing, it is the top priority for the department.

We see that with the mishandling of the Mitrice Richardson disappearance by the Malibu Police Department, after they released her after she clearly was acting disoriented as if her life and safety did not matter.

http://wp.me/pEzT2-3R

In LA, the name of the serial killer is ‘The Grim Sleeper’. A citizens action group has been set up to keep a focus on finding and prosecuting this killer. In south LA, the police were not very quick to connect the dots to incriminate one killer.

The following is quoted from their website, http://www.blackcoalitionfightsback.org/, and I encourage you all to look at it and support their effort to capture this killer…

Because the killings were not connected as serial murders, the tragic enormity of the situation has been hidden and downplayed, and vital evidence, connections and patterns may have been missed.

 Public and media attention which would have been greater if the total numbers of deaths had been known, would have spurred the police into a more vigorous investigation. Lives might have been saved and the community better protected from further attacks.

The first set of murders was announced in the mid-1980s after eleven women had already been killed in a 40-mile radius in South L.A. The police falsely referred to the killer as the “Prostitute Slayer” a name then picked up by the press.

By the end of the 1980s the public was told that the murders committed by the South side Slayer were solved.

The police named the second set of murders the “Strawberry Murders” (a name given by LAPD because they said the victims were mainly women who exchanged sex for drugs). A Sheriff’s Deputy, Ricky Ross, was arrested and charged with three of the murders and then subsequently released for lack of credible evidence.

 After 11 dead victims and one surviving eyewitness, LAPD have finally re-released 1988 composite sketch of serial killer infamously known as the “Grim Sleeper.”

A well spoken, 20 or 30-year-old man began attacking women, typically those working as prostitutes in South Los Angeles in 1985. Police found fingerprints, DNA and other compelling evidence that point to the same killer. All victims, including the surviving woman, were shot with the same small-caliber gun.

One woman, ‘Enietra’ Margette, survived an attack in 1988. The alleged serial killer shot the victim in the chest and sexually assaulted her.

Families of several of the victims were never notified by law enforcement that their loved ones were killed by a serial murderer—and neither was the lone survivor of the attacks.

 Each was made to believe that it had been a random killer. Many families had to learn from press articles or from television! Crucial patterns of evidence have been missed.

The public is deeply disturbed by the lack of information released over the past 20 years. The  Black Coalition Fighting Back Serial Murders challenged the LAPD to take more aggressive actions toward solving the cold cases.

According to reports, the police have recently released a 911 tape of witness who saw the driver of a van dump a body.

The Black Coalition begs the questions, “Why was so little done in 20 years to solve these murders?”

I know the answer to that is easy….”because it is easy for many in law enforcement to believe that black women are trash”….

Their treatment of our women proves this to be true.

Known Victims Of The Grim Sleeper

“This guy’s targeting people on the streets. Most of our girls have had issues with narcotics or prostitution, so it’s not so much that he’s creeping around, taking innocent mothers off the street. We suggest people just use caution when they’re out.”

“It’s the difference between the valuing of Black life versus the valuing of White life.

 Clearly if these were White women, as opposed to being Black women, especially if these were White women sort of in the working class, there would be an all-out onslaught. It would be national news … whether or not they were prostitutes,” said Atty. Gyamfi.

Family members of victims held a meeting with task force investigators to determine what else they didn’t know, like police had a composite sketch of the suspect but have never released it.

“They have a sketch that was done back in 1988 and that is something that normally you get out everywhere. You think about the Craig’s List killer, and how they had pictures of him and his head was always down or turned to the side. They didn’t care. They put that mess up and said if you have any information let us know,” she said.

And the 911 tape about Barbara Ware’s murder existed in the 1980s—but wasn’t made public until earlier this year.

LAPD is currently composing an updated sketch of the serial killer who may be in his late 40s to mid 50s now.

At the time of the eyewitness’s attack, the alleged murderer was described as well spoken, 20 to 30 years old, pockmarked face, between 5’8” to 5’10.” He was last seen driving an orange two-door 1970’s Pinto, hatchback with tinted windows and green interior.

Anyone with information is urged to contact 800 Task Force Detectives, Robbery-Homicide Division at (213) 473-0346 Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. During non-business hours, call the Detective Information Desk 877-LAPD-247.

If the murders had not happened in South L.A. against working-class Black women but in Beverly Hills or some other affluent neighborhood would they have been handled with the same lack of care and seriousness, would they be so under-reported by the media?

What do you think?

Source…

http://www.lawofficer.com/news-and- rticles/news/2009/11/lapd_releases_sketch_of_1985_serial_killer.html

http://www.finalcall.com/artman/publish/article_6366.shtml

Soy una persona que sólo ha recomendado dos películas en todo el año, así que, cuando recomiendo un libro, hazme caso.

Motherless Brooklyn, de Jonathan Lethem, es una novela de detectives con todos los ingredientes: tenemos un muerto, un caso que se va complicando a medida que intentamos resolverlo, gente que no es quien parece ser, un par de excéntricos mafiosos multimillonarios, una corporación japonesa de mafiosos que hacen Zen, gente que se entera aún menos que nosotros de lo que está pasando, la chica, la otra chica, alguna chica más, persecuciones, peleas, tiros, confesiones y un final donde se aclara todo. Como ya digo, es una novela negra que, de por sí, está bien, pero que tampoco sería como para destacarla especialmente.

Lo que hace increíblemente genial a Motherless Brooklyn es que el protagonista tiene síndrome de Tourette. La primera vez que leí sobre Tourette fue en El hombre que confundió a su mujer con un sombrero, de Oliver Sacks, un compendio de casos clínicos novelados que insisto en que es imprescindible leer, y que, de hecho, figura entre los agradecimientos de la novela de Lethem.

Los afectados de Tourette sufren tics y contracciones, involuntariamente hacen muecas y profieren insultos, o incluso gritos y ladridos. Al bueno de Lionel Essrog, incapaz de decir su nombre (“Liable Guesscog. Final Escrow. Ironic Pissclam. And so on.”), la ecolalia (y a veces coprolalia también) le tienen la cabeza como si fuera una máquina de hacer palomitas: las palabras distorsionadas burbujean en su interior y llega un momento en que los exabruptos explotan desparramándose por todas partes. Pero además sufre
de compulsiones que le llevan a tocar a sus interlocutores y repetir acciones que hayan producido algún ruido particular, todo ello un número determinado de veces, y en su infancia, a besar irremediablemente a los chicos de su orfanato (bastante mala idea).

La verdad, no parecen las características más apropiadas para un detective que intenta pasar desapercibido. Pero el síndrome de Tourette también puede aportar algunas ventajas muy siginificativas a la hora de vigilar y recabar información: cuando están vigilando una casa, el síndrome hace que Lionel se gire automáticamente cada 15 segundos a controlar la puerta, la avenida y los callejones laterales – nada de policías que se pierden justo lo que han ido a observar por estar comiéndose un donut. Y, en las escuchas telefónicas, Lionel se obsesiona con las palabras clave para la investigación, por lo que es imposible que se pierda ningún resquicio de información. Y, en fin, se le da genial darle vueltas en la cabeza a las cosas en busca de cualquier tipo de relación, por absurda que pueda parecer. Pero, sobre todo, quizás el motivo sea uno que no conviene olvidar:

“He said the reason you were useful to him was because you were crazy everyone thought you were stupid.”

No sé cómo de realista llegará a ser la novela con respecto al síndrome, pero como lectura es fantástica. Me encanta cómo Lionel se queda atascado en palabras y frases de especial sonoridad y va jugando con ellas y tergiversándolas hasta que, de pronto, profiere un “Eat me Bailey!” en mitad de la conversación. A partir de ahora, para mí Alfred Hitchcock será ya siempre “Altered Houseclock”. Sería un nombre genial para un grupo de música. Pero quizás uno de los episodios más geniales de todos se produzca con El artista anteriormente conocido como Prince:

Me, I was bluffing, didn’t read magazines at all. Then I spotted a familiar face, on a magazine called Vibe: The Artist Formerly Known as Prince. The unpronounceable typographical glyph with which he had replaced his name was shaved into the hair at his temple.
“Skrubble,” I said.
“What?”
“Plavshk,” I said. My brain had decided to try to pronounce that unpronounceable glyph, a linguistic foray into the lands On Beyond Zebra. I lifted up the magazine.
“You’re telling me you’re gonna read Vibe?”
“Sure.”
“You trying to make fun of me here, Alibi?”
“No, no, I’m a big fan of Skursvshe.”
“Who?”
“The Artist Formerly Known As Plinvstk.”

Lo dicho, una mezcla maravillosa. Como una novela vitoriana con zombis…

Just finished: The Woman in White.

Reading next: Guilty Pleasures, by Donald Barthelme.

This book really does have more than its fair share of monsters, doesn’t it?  People monstrous — grotesque might be another way of putting it (but then I couldn’t use that killer title, lifted from this Maureen McHugh collection) — in their self-interest, their willful disavowal of wrongdoing or even wrongful impulse, their superficial gentility.

Fosco is an obvious example — like Milton’s Satan, he seems something of a heroic villain until you remember the bodies he’s buried under rhetoric, charm, and rationalization (it’s more complicated with the rather defensible Satan, of course, but that’s a whole other topic) — and I’ve already talked a little about Frederick Fairlie, who is so indifferent to everything in the world but his own comfort as to be rather delightful.  But I’m thinking here of other monsters.

The monstrous mother is Mrs. Catherick.  In her discussion with Walter, and especially in the letter she sends him, Mrs. Catherick displays her absolute lack of interest in her daughter’s well being; the coldness with which she dismisses news of Anne is matched only by the warmth with which she justifies her abandonment of Anne.  It’s a magnificent portrait, this little sketch of Mrs. Catherick.  There’s her pride at being bowed to by the minister, this tiny measure of civility and her rehabilitated status in her community to be clung to at all costs.  And, especially, there’s her magnificent sign-off to Walter, which, in context, seems like the epitome of that hoary old chestnut, the banality of evil: “My hour for tea is half-past five, and my buttered toast waits for nobody.”

Is it wrong to argue that Walter Hartright himself is something of a monster, too?  What brought this to mind for me was his insistence that he bore no blame for Glyde’s death.  Of course, Glyde never would have been where he was if Walter were not digging into Glyde’s past — it’s not like he bears no responsibility.  And one of the main conflicts throughout the Third Epoch is Walter’s internal struggle between the need for vengeance and the need to protect Marian and Laura.  Collins kind of bails Walter out of this conflict, in the end.  But the conflict hews awfully close to that classic noir trope of the detective as the other side of the criminal coin: capable of impulses as dark as any murderer’s.  Interesting, that this proto-detective novel already contains the DNA of hardboiled novels and The French Connection.

Les détectives privés français sont tenus au secret professionnel nous apprend un article publié dans le FIGARO du 13 novembre 2009 qui reprend une dépêche de l’AFP (Agence France Presse).

C’est une décision qui émane de l’autorité administrative chargée de veiller au respect de la déontologie par les détectives privés que les membres de cetette profession  devront désormais respecter.

Elle semble, pour le moins curieusement,  déplaire à certains qui croient pouvoir demander l’annulation de cette décision au Ministère de l’Intérieur !

Or il s’agit d’une autorité administrative indépendante, qui ne dépend donc pas du Ministère de l’Intérieur qui n’a aucun pouvoir sur la commission nationale de déontologie de la sécurité !

Bien au contraire, cette autorité a été créée pour dénoncer les violations de la déontologie par les services de la Police française et elle ne s’en privé pas à consulter son site Internet (www.cnds.fr).

La décision rendue est intéressante car elle précise, déjà, les motivations de sa compétence sur les détectives privés français :

“A titre liminaire et puisque cette exception a été soulevée par M. … lui même, la Commission entend affirmer sa réserve sa compétence en ce qui concerne la déontologie professionnelle des agents de recherches privées.”

Suit  la justification très détaillée de cette compétence juridique qui confirme donc la position de cette autorité administrative.

Que penser des réactions de détectives privés français qui dénoncent cette décision ?

- soit ils sont incompétents

- soit ils ont peur de la décision de cette autorité administrative qui pourra,  désormais, contrôler leurs agissements déontologiques et dénoncer les violations éventuelles des lois.

- soit ils veulent couvrir – ce qui serait tout autant inadmissible – un professionnel qui méconnu ses obligations déontologiques.

Il convient, toutefois, de noter que tous les détectives privés ne protestent pas contre cette décision, puisque l’article publié dans LE FIGARO (lien ci-dessous) note, au contraire, qu’un syndicat se félicite de la décision de la commission administrative.

Il est pourtant évident que tout ce qui apporte des garanties aux clients est bénéfique à la profession et pour rendre confiance dans les détectives privés.

La France a fait deux choix intéressants :

- imposer le secret professionnel aux détectives privés

- créer une autorité administrative pour contrôler les détectives privés

Cette politique nous parait un excellent moyen de valoriser la profession qui devrait être étendu à tous les pays du Monde, n’en déplaise à quelques fantaisistes qui souhaiteraient échapper à tous contrôles !

Cette décision administrative apporte aux clients français des agences de détectives privés deux nouvelles garanties de taille :

1°) tout client (ou tiers) constatant la violation de la déontologie par un détective privé français pourra maintenant saisir la “commission nationale de déontologie de la sécurité”, c’est à dire une autorité administrative indépendante sur laquelle aucune administration publique n’a le moindre pouvoir d’intervention , de nuisance ou de pression.

(Elle devrait être, d’ailleurs, bientôt également compétente également pour les sociétés d’intelligence économique qui devraient être intégrées dans un titre III de la loi sur les professions françaises de sécurité : le projet de loi est déjà déposé au parlement français).

Ainsi la divulgation de renseignements puisés dans les fichiers administratifs français (notamment de Police, de Gendarmerie, des impôts, de la sécurité sociale etc…) pourra faire l’objet d’une enquête administrative (le secret professionnel n’est pas opposable à cette commission) et le cas échéant d’une saisine, par cette autorité, du tribunal pénal.

C’est, peut être, ce que redoutent ceux qui dénoncent la décision de l’autorité administrative car, dans le cas de l’affaire traitée l’avis de la Commission a été transmis au Ministre de l’Intérieur, à deux Préfets et au Procureur de la République compétent !

2°) le secret professionnel est reconnu et imposé aux détectives privés français sous peine de saisie du tribunal pénal.

« A l’instar de l’obligation de coopération loyale, le secret professionnel est à la base de la relation de confiance entre l’enquêteur de droit privé et son mandant.

Dégagée par la jurisprudence (…), consacrée de manière ponctuelle par certains textes règlementant la profession (…)  reconnu par l’ensemble des organisations professionnelles représentatives des agences de recherches privées, l’obligation de respecter le secret professionnel constitue le socle même de la déontologie des enquêteurs de droit privé.

Sans cette obligation, les mandants ne pourraient se confier ni être défendus.

Dans le cadre d’une procédure en révision comme en l’espèce, l’avocat, qui ne peut instrumenter lui même, est souvent conduit à saisir un enquêteur aux fins d’effectuer, dans le cadre des droits de la défense, des recherches utiles à l’intérêt de son mandant.

Ce faisant l’enquêteur devient l’un des acteurs privilégiés de l’effectivité même des droits de la défense. Pour exercer pleinement ce rôle, l’enquêteur est nécessairement dépositaire d’informations confidentielles dans le cadre d’un secret partagé avec l’avocat.

Toute divulgation non autorisée d’informations confidentielles est alors constitutive d’un manquement à la déontologie professionnelle et, le cas échéant, d’un délit pénal (violation du secret professionnel, art. 226-13 C. pén.; (…)».

Tout détective privé attaché à la défense des intérêts de la profession et des clients ne peut qu’approuver cette décision de l’autorité administrative française, et déplorer les prises de position incongrues de ceux qui osent la dénoncer.

L’article du Figaro :

http://www.lefigaro.fr/flash-actu/2009/11/13/01011-20091113FILWWW00394-secret-professionnel-pour-les-detectives.php

On my last trip to Rio I started E. L. Doctorow’s City of God. After all, that’s the name of one of the most well known slums in Rio (and a book and movie that take place therein). Doctorow is talking about a different city though: New York. After reading ten of Agatha Christie’s Hercule Poirot novels over the last year, this narrative struck me:

While I was at it, I bought half a dozen used paperback detective novels. To learn the trade … I just read the…things when I’m dpressed. The paperback detective he speaks to me. His rod and his gaff they comfort me. [p8]

Those last two sentence are classic Hercule Poirot sentence construction.  (Kind of like Yoda’s but also … different.)

* * * Buena * * *

Año: 1998
Idiomas: Inglés
Director: Los hermanos Coen
Género: Comedia
La ví en: Mi portátil

Avance:

Yo:

El comienzo es lentongo pero cuando empiezan los diálogos cobra fuerza. Al final la pierde: tantos retazos acumulados terminan haciéndose pesados. Creo que si hubiese visto esta peli sin ninguna expectativa me hubiese gustado mucho más.

Me han dicho ya que me parezco al Big Lebowski. En la primera escena dije “joer, ese soy yo comprando en Mercadona”  Luego ni tanto, porque el Dude es demasiado relajado e inconexo, pero quién sabe.

Los personajes son todos raretes.  Eso agrada, le da un toque caricaturesco, aunque algunos desesperan.

Los flashbacks de LSD son divertidos.

La banda sonora es variada. No conocía gran parte, pero no está nada mal. A la hora de hacer versiones ¡Los Gipsy Kings son los mejores!

Recursos:

es.wikipedia en.wikipedia IMDB Rottentomatoes Metacritic Allmovie

Whilst looking through some boxes of stuff for something or other I found the above which is the back of a bookmark I made for my mum sometime in primary school. The front was a rather charming bit of sewing I’m quite envious of in my older years but never one to leave a blank space empty, I decided to illustrate the back with many of mum’s favourite detectives from the crime novels she’s a sucker for. And who couldn’t be excited by Murder!? And Suspence! And Mystery! And….Murder!

See how many of your own favourite crime-solvers you can find!

ICORP Investigations gives top three reasons why victims of a cheating spouse should consider hiring a private investigators to find out the truth.

NEW YORK, NY, October 09, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ — NYC leading Private Investigators, ICORP Investigations gives top three reasons why victims of a cheating spouse should consider hiring a private investigator to find out the truth.

According to a recent survey, 92% of participants admitted they would be unfaithful if they knew they wouldn’t get caught.

Although there are many people who discover their spouses have cheated on them, there is an enormous amount of people who will probably never find out the truth.

Married couples who are unaware their spouse is cheating are putting themselves at high risk legally, emotionally and they are putting their health at risk as well.

1. Legally protect yourself. In some states, when a spouse commits infidelity, this can be used as grounds for a divorce including states with no-fault divorce laws.

2. Protect yourself emotionally. If you have a constant unsettling feeling that your spouse is cheating on you, this can cause emotional wear and tear on your body. Once you discover what is truly going on with your spouse, you can finally begin to handle the situation.

3. Protect your health. When your spouse is committing adultery, this can put you at risk for sexually transmitted diseases (STDs). If your spouse is involved in adultery and he/she is not using condoms, they are ultimately putting your health in jeopardy. If you find out your spouse is cheating on you, you can take the necessary precautions to protect your health.

ICORP Investigations led by Steven Santarpia and John Egan has become a leader in the investigative industry by helping several clients save time and money. They utilize a state-of-the-art online database system to keep their clients updated via phone and email 24/7.

In a recent interview ICORP’s CEO Steven Santarpia stated “Helping clients who are the victims of their spouses cheating give me hope, knowing that they will not be going through that anymore and can start to repair their life.

The private investigations team at ICORP Investigations has years of experience and only uses in-house employees. Unlike many private investigative companies, they do not subcontract investigators from other agencies to work on their clients cases.

Most of all, ICORP Investigations is fully licensed, insured and bonded in the state of New York.

The private investigation team offers free consultation for all of their private investigative services. Their private investigative services includes: Domestic, Spousal Surveillance, Child Custody, Background Checks and Insurance.

For further details about ICORP, visit: nycprivateinvestigatorsinc.com.

ICORP Investigations
New York City
300 Park Ave, 17th Floor
New York, NY 10022
T. (212) 572-4823
F. (212) 572-6499
http://www.nycprivateinvestigatorsinc.com

Private Investigators – Hampton Bays, Southampton, Bridgehampton, Noyack, Sag Harbor, North Haven, Mattituck, Cutchogue, Southold, Greenport, East Hampton, Amagansett, Suffolk County Long Island

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EDGAR ALLAN POE (1):
LOS CRÍMENES DE LA RUE MORGUE

Edgar Allan Poe (1809-1849) fue un romántico, un poeta, un soñador, un visionario. Creó mundos góticos, oníricos, irreales, horribles e inquietantes. Sufrió la angustia del escritor sin medios y vivió con una intensidad hoy casi inalcanzable. Fue un auténtico genio de la poesía y de la novela. Tal vez, el mejor escritor norteamericano del siglo XIX, o al menos el más leído durante generaciones. Se dice que experimentó con las drogas, que era alcohólico, mientras otros afirman que su cuerpo tenía intolerancia al alcohol y que murió asesinado en Baltimore, durante las elecciones, en las que fue embriagado para que votase varias veces por el candidato local. Mucho se ignora de su vida privada, y algunos se engolfan con el asunto del ‘casi incesto pederasta’ (me refiero al casamiento que hubo entre él y su prima de catorce años, Virginia Eliza Clemm), pero a nosotros sólo nos interesa su Literatura, en general, y en particular la que se refiere a lo policíaco.

Poe llamó a sus narraciones extraordinarias Cuentos de lo Grotesco y de lo Arabesco, que luego han recibido, en las sucesivas reediciones de su obra, varias denominaciones, como Cuentos de Horror y Misterio u otras parecidas. Algunos de ellos, como El corazón delator, El Barril de Amontillado, Un hombre entre la multitud, o novelitas cortas como la excelente historia del tesoro enterrado (El escarabajo de oro) o la maravillosa William Wilson (¿el asesino y el asesinado pueden ser una misma persona?), tienen trazas de relato policial, más en la conciencia torturada del criminal que en la aparición de un policía -sea profesional o aficionado. No son cuentos policiales, pero merecen citarse y, por supuesto, su lectura es recomendable y producirá un gozoso disfrute en los lectores más exigentes. No obstante, es en los tres cuentos que él mismo denominó bajo el calificativo de ‘analíticos’ donde mejor y más claramente podemos ver los balbuceos del género policial.

Los crímenes de la Rue Morgue (The Murders in the Rue Morgue) fue publicado en la Graham’s Magazine en 1841. Trata de un horripilante crimen: dos mujeres, una anciana y una joven (como en Crimen y Castigo, por cierto) son halladas brutalmente asesinadas: una de ellas ha sido introducida en la chimenea, imagen espeluznante de un cuerpo empujado y aprisionado, que debemos imaginar lleno de heridas y del tizne del hollín.

El problema es que la puerta a la habitación del crimen está cerrada por dentro, como las ventanas, la chimenea taponada por uno de los cuerpos… En definitiva: ¿por dónde entró el asesino y cómo logró salir? Es lo que se ha llamado ‘El problema del recinto cerrado’, y desde entonces se ha convertido en uno de los esquemas básicos y más frecuentados por los escritores de la novela policial. El inglés Dickson Carr es, sin duda, el maestro de este tipo de narraciones policiales, aunque lo han usado otros autores.

Los personajes básicos que aparecen en esta narración son el detective profesional y el aficionado, que parecen enfrentarse a un duelo de ingenio para resolver el jeroglífico del crimen. El tercer hombre es el narrador, cuyo nombre, sin embargo, desconocemos. Ocurre la acción en Francia. Tenemos, pues, varios elementos importantes:

a) El detective profesional, el policía oficial, que es un hombre torpe, burocrático, falto de inteligencia pero pleno de presunción e ignorancia. En las novelas de Émile Gaboriau (las del detective Vidocq) y de Gaston Léroux (El Rouletabille de El misterio del cuarto amarillo, por cierto, otra novela con ‘el problema del recinto cerrado’) aparecen varios de estos policías incompetentes y presuntuosos, enemigos del detective aficionado, que se dejan llevar por la inercia de obsoletos métodos de trabajo y nada dejan para un momento de reflexión o de inspiración artística. Son seres prosaicos, rutinarios, ineptos.

b) El detective aficionado, en realidad es aquí casi un filósofo, un hombre cuyo oficio desconocemos (parece vivir de las rentas), pero apasionado de las matemáticas, el análisis científico y defensor del empirismo, es decir, de basarse en pruebas racionales para la resolución de los enigmas más intrincados. Se llama Charles Auguste Dupin, vive en el Faubourg Saint Germain de París y, según nos es descrito, hay que imaginarlo alto, calvo y con un intelecto agudo, perspicaz, rayando la genialidad, en suma. Dupin es un artista del razonamiento, un ajedrecista de la mente, o un hombre con mente de ajedrecista.

Dupin no es un hombre de acción. Todo lo contrario a Holmes. No se disfraza, como Vidocq o Arsène Lupin. No es atildado, como Poirot. No es simplón, como el Padre Brown. No es un duro, como Sam Spade. Es un hombre mental, reflexivo. Es puro intelecto: una máquina de pensar bien engrasada y dispuesta a cazar al criminal con una ecuación: al despejar la incógnita se revela la única verdad posible, la que ha escapado al torpe y burocrático oficial de la Policiá parisina. La verdad pura y dura, incontrovertible. La verdad casi matemática de que dos y dos son cuatro y no cinco, como quería encajar en nuestra mente el policía oficial.

c) El ayudante del detective que es, además, quien nos narra la historia. En las novelas policiales posteriores a Poe será una figura de enorme interés, siendo tal vez el Dr. Watson quien mejor encarna este personaje del amigo, escudero y biógrafo oficial del héroe detectivesco. Hay en el amigo de Dupin una mezcla de candidez y admiración sincera, de impresionable perplejidad ante las soluciones que propone su amigo el detective que le hacen ser una figura entrañable, muy simpática a ojos del lector, e incluso cómica.

A veces el compañero del detective no narra sus aventuras, como el Capitán Hastings de las novelas de Agatha Christie en las que aparece Poirot, pero siempre está ahí, a su lado y podrá ser torpe, cándido o ridículo, pero es absolutamente necesario por motivos narrativos: a alguien le debe contar Dupin sus ideas sobre el caso, ¿verdad?

Alguien sugirió que el personaje narrador es el propio Poe, que se inserta en la historia, al igual que hace en Los hechos en el caso del señor Valdemar, pero eso no está claro. Podemos imaginar que es Poe, un Poe en París, amigo de un extraño recolector de argumentos de la más alta finura científica, lógica y matemática, pero eso queda para la interpretación de cada uno de sus lectores.

No puedo revelaros nada sobre la solución de este enigma que nos plantea Poe. ¿Cómo entró el criminal? ¿Qué lengua hablaba? ¿Era francés o extranjero? ¿Cómo es posible que pudiera asesinar con tal brutalidad a dos mujeres indefensas? ¿A qué despiadado psicópata se le puede ocurrir introducir un cuerpo en una chimenea y por qué? ¿Cómo salió de la habitación y dejó puertas y ventanas cerradas tras de sí?.

No puedo daros ni el más mínimo indicio, ni la más pequeña pista o dato porque rompería la magia de la historia y os enfadaríais conmigo. Debéis leer el cuento. Mal aficionado a la novela policial sería si os contara quién es el asesino en esta historia. Sólo puedo anticiparos que os sorprenderá de tal modo que desearéis leer los otros relatos ‘analíticos’ de Poe. De ellos hablaremos otro día, si os parece.

Si queremos combinar las novelas policíacas y además nos gustan los viajes, la mejor opción en estos momentos es Qiu Xialong.  Ha escrito tres novelas, la primera de ellas es “Muerte de una heroina roja”.  El inspector jefe Chen nos lleva por todo Shangai hablándonos de costumbres chinas, comida, poesía, amores, y tambien tenemos …el cuerpo, la muerta… el asesino.  Se hace entretenida.  Si queréis detalles sobre ello podéis ir a granadablogs y podéis conocer otras opiniones.