But neither is the pursuit of money any sort of notable goal. It's sort of like, "oh, well, get in line behind the other hoards of people who also want to be rich."

Nobody will care about what you do if this is your goal. On the other hand, if you can tell people "I want to make your life easier by: filling a market gap, changing an industry for the better, making X easier to use, making Y more affordable" then people will care. Thinking more about others than yourself is also probably a good way to actually find a good business!

Sorry, I did not mean to give offense, but the presumption that there's something wrong with not pursuing money is both a) irksome and b) at the root of a large number of ills in our society.

Actually yes.