Crash was essentially a meditation on 1. Despite what we state in public, we still maintain "politically incorrect" opinions about other races (whether we are black, white, or any other color). Crash merely made the characters say what most of us think but are afraid to say. and 2. Despite our preoccupation with racism as "the ultimate public sin", many of those that superficially are racist, are actually outstanding human beings under the rough surface. The hero of the film is a "bigoted" white cop for Crissake.
This writer is so blinded by the ideology that "everything is hunky dory among the races" in America, that he failed to see the real message behind the movie: That all of us have our faults and prejudices, but that they do not define who we are as people.
You make some good points. To be honest, I am prob one of the few people on here that saw Brokeback Mouintain and actually thought it was a pretty good film. I think he right on about the manufactured hype about the movie esp on the left. I thought Crash was disappointing in alot of ways. I think the writer does have a point about the old days. The NR had quite a good article on how after 9/11 it seemed that it really disminished the race issue because we are all Americans now. In my view it certainty took the nasty "edge" off of it though. It does seems like it receded some but your right in your post though. I guess I cant see another LA Riot situation happening like that again in our current climate. or for the forseeable future.