Fair, but just like the twitter dude who founded banksimple, it's a hell of a lot easier for them to say, "Hey, you guys should be focused on making the world a better place instead of making bank" after, well, having made their own money. He/bank simple dude aren't choosing between having lots of disposable income and working on a startup that matters, whatever his definition of matter may be.

   Yet I fear that our industry is squandering its opportunity and its talent. In
   companies large and small, great minds are devoting their lives to endeavors that,
   even if wildly successful, fail to do great things.

That quote is a little hard to stomach from someone who presumably will never again worry about making rent or paying for a college education for a child, etc. The rise of the lean startup -- what Ries, Blank, and even people like patio11 talk about -- is much more likely to do very well for the founders than being an employee at a change the world company. So I kind of feel like the employees / potential employees are being sold a line of crap by people who want them to make decisions contrary to their own financial interests.