If Cohen is your hero for making 6 figures but doesn't get algebra, then I am your hero on the other end of the spectrum. 6 figure income, no education past high school but I use algebra everyday to earn my income. So how about we keep it for those of us that dig holes for a living.
High school is meant to give a broad education on a variety of subjects. If certains areas are tough for some people it should help them decide a career path that focuses on their strengths while exposing their weaknesses.
Nope, no hero worship involved. Merely pointing out that holding him up as a failure as in the given example, "Kids learn your algebra or you'll wind up like Cohen." isn't likely to yield the desired result. Since he's wildly more successful than anyone most of them even know personally, it probably doesn't look like all that bad from their vantage point.