Well, I don't think going excessively fast is neccessarily a bad thing. I think that there are places, even on public roads, where its not a big deal. In Michigan, where this guy was arrested - yeah, it probably is always a big deal. Where I live there are so many miles of long flat open roads with zero traffic and miles of sight distance, that if you feel like maxing out your bike and seeing what it can do, the only person you are going to kill if things turn sour is yourself.
How many riders east of the Mississippi can go out and ride a hundred miles and see three or four or no cars at all? Not that hard to do many places in the west. Does that make excessive speed defensible? No, not really, but it doesn't make it insanely dangerous either. Mr. State Trooper is still going to write you a fat ticket or haul your butt off.
Overall, I feel alot safer doing 100 at home in the desert than 50 down a maxed out freeway on the coast. I will readily grant, however, that 154 is pretty silly fast, and I've never done more than about 130 myself.
My $0.02 worth.