>> Sure, and you have a 4 second gap so can come almost to a complete stop 
>> without hitting them.  Even if the guy behind you is only leaving a 0.5 
>> second gap, he is *not* going to be faced with a stationary car in 0.5 s,
>
> No, he's going to be faced with a stationary car in 3.5 seconds.

How come?  Even if he continues at a constant speed he's not going to reach 
the stopped car for 4.5 seconds, but I assume he's going to start braking a 
bit after he sees the car ahead braking.

> And the guy have a second behind him will be faces with a stationary car 
> in 3 seconds. Then 2.5.  Etc.  See what I'm saying?

Sure, but in most cases people can deal braking normally and stop without 
crashing.  It's only once one person has crashed, then suddenly everyone 
behind has to stop a lot faster so it kind of chain reactions back.  It then 
only takes one car leaving a bigger gap to "reset" the chain reaction and 
then people behind can brake in a normal manner again.

> By slamming into the person in front of you, you have eliminated the 
> braking time you're claiming protects the person behind you.

Yes, but my whole point is if you leave a 4 second gap you are massively 
reducing the chances that you slam into the person in front.

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