You're right bobad, but sometimes it helps just to vent when frustration hits.

I was taught to stay far enough away from the vehicle in front, at a stop, to be able to see tyres and tarmac. That way, if the person in front couldn't get their vehicle moving for any reason, I would have space to drive round them. It also gives a little buffer in case of being rear ended - meaning a bit less chance of ending up with front and rear damage.

What got to me yesterday was the woman in the car behind mine driving along the Mass Turnpike who had to drive so close to my car that if I had had to brake sharply she would have no chance of avoiding a collision. She had a child in the front seat as well! I was in the outside lane, travelling at a safe distance from the preceding vehicle, at a matching speed and overtaking vehicles on the two inside lanes. This madwoman finally dove into a small gap in the next lane and then repeated the maneouvre into the inside lane, drove at speed into a small gap in the middle lane a little further up and gained about three vehicle lengths in the outside lane, still behind a lot of traffic travelling in that lane. As far as I'm concerned - you want to kill yourself go do it where you won't affect other people and don't take your kids out with you!