A sister's comment that she was comforted after her brother's death in a catastrophic car crash by knowing he died doing what he loved – drinking and driving fast – has stirred up a wave of outrage along the foothills of Colorado.

Lorie Flaherty told the Boulder Daily Camera after her brother was one of three people killed when a car going down a city street at 100 miles per hour hit a light pole and exploded into pieces that such an accident "really isn't a shock to any of us" who knew her brother.

"The thing that really makes me feel much better about this is they died doing what they loved to do – they were drinking, they were going fast and they were together," she told the newspaper. "It gives me comfort, it does, to know those three things."

Michael Martin Flaherty, 21; Lucas Raymond Snyder, 21; and Amber Dawn Kowalski, 23, all died when the Subaru one of them (police aren't sure who) was driving at an estimated 100 mph hit a light pole in Louisville, splitting the vehicle in half.

Lorie Flaherty said her brother was born with a disease that left him blind in one eye, so he couldn't drive himself. But she said he was fascinated with speed, and never missed a chance to be sitting in the passenger seat of her Mustang as the two raced at nearby Bandimere Speedway.

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"He was always going fast, always in cars," she told the newspaper.

"Let's get real here, how lucky are the other people who were not drinking and driving on McCaslin in Louisville that night to be alive, having not been hit by out of control maniacs traveling 100 mph. Did nobody see them and call 911?" wrote "djrocks" on the newspaper's forums page.

"What complete idiots they all are (were), leaving 3 children without biological parents and risking the lives of everyone out that evening…"

"'The thing that really makes me feel much better about this is they died doing what they loved to do…' For a minute I thought I was reading The Onion. Simply unreal," wrote "mmuir."

"Firefighters, policemen, soldiers, mountain climbers … THEY sometimes die doing what they loved to do. To hear this comment being applied to this situation is truly pathetic," wrote "mrpeptide."

"This is a prime example of irresponsible journalism. Romanticizing suicidal behavior is dangerous, and could be negligent. You should think before you ink," wrote "tjknorr."

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!! 'They died doing what they loved – drinking and driving.' Thank God me and my kids were not out on that road that night to be the collateral damage that these irresponsible kids annihilated," said "mlyoung33."

"That is one of the most stunning quotes I've ever read. … This is a good article; it tells a story that maybe should be posted in high school cafeteria's (sic) across the country," wrote "Buzz." "With all this talk of homeland security, it's pretty clear we're paranoid about the wrong threats: three people fired a deadly missile … and fortunately all they hit with it was a lightpole."

The discussion quickly expanded to other forums, too. On a forum on the Rocky Mountain News website, the response was vigorous.

"'They died doing what they loved,' has got to be the worst rationalization for a senseless death," wrote "AngelontheSidelines," "Platitudes do not ease the pain of surviving friends and family. Dead is still dead, nothing will make it better."

"On the bright side, these idiots didn't take anyone with them. I've never read a more inappropriate eulogy than their sister's. Sheesh!" added Dhakala.

Wrote "FloydHill," "The headline should read: 'Sister says 3 died doing what they loved: drinking and driving, and dying fast.' GIT-R-DONE!"

And CWW said, "Live fast, die young and have a good looking corpse. Ooops, two outta three ain't bad."

Authorities reported the trio had been out Thursday evening and early Friday. Lorie Flaherty said the three were enjoying beers and each other's company at a pizza shop before they got into Kowalski's Subaru Impreza WRX and headed north.

"That car is for racing, it's for going fast," she said.

Michael's father, David, said he doesn't harbor any resentment about the accident.

"It was a bad decision," he told the newspaper. "If I heard they were going that fast, and they hadn't crashed, I would have chewed them out."

"Consequences of a free society," said "Gene" on the Rocky Mountain News forum. "The temptation is to outlaw, drinking, racing and stupidity after reading something like this."

"jamesdenver" noted that such a result is the expected outcome of people's choices.

"When teens 'weed themselves out' during the teen death months of May/June (springtime parties and sex) it's not tragic – it's the logical outcome of such behavior. It makes sense you WOULD die driving 100 on an arterial. Or take out a cyclist while texting. To do that risking others isn't tragic – it's stupid and selfish."

"Ya know for the still living fans of speed – there are actual raceways you can pay for to drive fast on. Sans lightpoles," he continued.

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