The vast majority of people can drive on snow or ice without problems. There is an unfortunate minority (is that racist?) who are too dumb to slow down and drive on slick roads. Therein lies the rub (and the hilarious videos).
“The vast majority of people can drive on snow or ice without problems.”
That is so wrong. There’s a reason a half-inch of snow triggers school closures in Atlanta. Deep southerners don’t see enough snow or ice often enough to learn how to drive on it.
I believe that the spate of early-season accidents has something to do with the fact that the roadbed has not yet frozen solid. When you have snow falling on such pavement at 20 degree temperatures, there exists a thin melt layer between the warmish pavement and the cold atmosphere that wants to freeze into ice.
Later in the season, you don't have this struggle between the warmish ground and the cold atmosphere, so you don't get this ice-ish layer.
The later season road ice may have a different character - spikier ice crystals, with a higher coefficient of friction?
Depends on what you mean by ice. If you can't walk on it and your car won't even stay put if it's stopped on a slope, you can't drive in it. Not without cleated chains or studded tires at least, and those are banned in many states for all but emergency vehicles due to damaging the pavement.
When I lived in Minnesota, I had to make a number of service calls to pipeline terminals during blizzards. I was driving a Subaru Forester at the time. I still had to slow down either due to the snow on the road, visibility, or both. I saw a lot of pickup trucks pass me at speed, only to pass them because they were in the ditch or pulled over by a deputy. Once I was pulled over by a deputy, and he asked me why I was driving in such conditions. I gave him the business reason, adding that the terminal was having trouble with their propane truck loading. He replied “Well it’s going to be cold and people need their propane. You be careful and get there safely.”