No one is 'giving' their time; they're being paid for it. You're not doing anyone any favors. You're performing a task and getting compensated quite well to do so. Such an entitled perspective.
Edit: I wouldn't necessarily say each individual employee takes on more risk than the VC. But I would definitely say that, on the whole, they do. A startup that "almost makes it" can be a life & opportunity cost sucking endeavor for employees, VCs don't have to worry about that as much because they have their fingers in a lot of pies.
But net worth has everything to do with risk. A person worth $1 million putting up all $1 million is risking everything he has. A person worth $1 billion probably won't even notice if he loses $1 million. There's almost no risk to him if he loses that money.
GGP is either incapable of comprehending the broader scope for whatever reason, or is deliberately limiting the scope to "win."
Monetary risk is all about the percentage of net worth at stake.
If I put $100 dollars on a startup I'm not taking a huge risk. And for VCs, their investment is often what $100 dollars are to me.
Imagine the young, newly-minted PhD looking to strike out in industry and kick-start their career with some real cool engineering. They saddle up with Theranos and sink several years of productive life into a technology that will never work--and that people at the top knew would never work. They'll move on, but at what cost? This is their life and career, not just a bit of cash.
Compare that to a VC losing their investment? That is insulting and wrong on every mark.