Is it just me, or does the comic not make any sense? Wouldn't a rich person always go for the money, thus the people surviving? A better version would be to put the money next to bound people, which would force the rich person to make a choice between money and saving people.
EDIT: Thanks for the clarification. I guess I play too many video games. :)
No, you're reading it wrong. The trolley destroys what it runs over. An easy way to imagine it instead of money's say property. You have 4 people on one line, or your nice shiny car on another. If you choose the people over the car, you've killed 4 people just to keep your car. In like vein, this rich person can either destroy potential profits but save lives, or he can choose to save the profit over the lives of multiple people.
I don't see how your version works: it would be destroying both.