I never for one moment suggested that I do or would ignore speed controls. I said: "a stable approach is a fundamental tenant of a safe operation of a large commercial airliner. Accurate speed control is absolutely vital to putting the aeroplane down in the right spot and getting it safely stopped."
The bulk of aircraft accidents happen in the landing phase. The major cause of landing accidents can be traced back to rushed approaches, and unstable approaches. 4 miles is 1200'. With planning it is possible to be stable at 1000, and definitely stable at 500'.
Carrying unnecessary excess speed is one cause of a unstable approach.
Recent studies show that, most CFIT accidents occur within 8nms of the airfield, and a very large proportion of these are on the centreline within 3nms.
1000' is about the last point to have energy management issues resolved in order to ensure maximum capacity for the last 3nms of the approach to monitor and manage the most exposed part of the flight.