Full disclsosure: I am neither a Democrat nor a Republican. Both parties suck.

Our President gave a talk the other day during which he mentioned the responsibility of successful entrepreneurs to pay their due. Hmmm. I know this video has been overanalyzed and over-defended on both sides of the political spectrum. But the main point is that he doesn’t seem to get what being an entrepreneur actually entails.

Full disclosure number two: I aspire to live the American dream. You know the one where you move to America, start your own business, get rich, and give all your money back to the government.

Except, I was born in America, so I can’t move here. I moved to the Midwest, does that count?  And I’d prefer to keep my money and give charitably  to places of my own choosing, rather having the IRS snatch it.  Oh, and I’m not rich. Yet.

So let’s examine his talk about entrepreneurs.

He doesn’t get me. He doesn’t get risk. He doesn’t understand real risk because he’s never had to live it. He’s never had to make the choice of escaping the golden handcuffs of a good job, coming up with an original business model, paying rent on an office, and paying employees before yourself.

It’s exhilarating. Like jumping out of a plane. Something I wouldn’t recommend as an entrepreneur. Who is going to run your business if you break both your legs? Or die?

But wasn’t running for president a risk? No, not really. He had a backup job. No, he doesn’t know risk. Without us risk takers we wouldn’t have some of those things he quoted in the speech.

Those roads? If Henry Ford hadn’t successfully automated the car manufacturing process we’d still be riding our bikes on dirt. He failed miserably several times until he came up with a system that made cars affordable for the whole country. And he gave people a good salary because it made sense, not because the government forced him.

And the schools? Don’t even get me started. I live in Obamas home state. Until 2010, 35% was considered a passing score on the Basic Skills Test for teachers.

It comes down to this. If there is no reward for risk, why take any? If the only reward for risk brings the fear of getting hit with the Alternate Means Tax (aka You Filthy Rich Person Must Give Me All Your Money), then why try to succeed? I guess my new goal is to make just enough money to not get a target on my back. I will follow that up with a trip to New York City where I will get a pop just large enough to not get arrested.