What an astonishing thread! Not much I can add to the mix here. Steve (mixed gas) has pretty much nailed everything down above.
One thing that would help, Dr. Laser, is to know your location. Are you in the US or abroad? (Being in the states ups the legal risk.) Also, if you are in the states, are you coastal (east or west - doesn't matter) or are you inland? (As Steve mentioned, if you're in the midwest you better love being on the road... It also limits your markets...)
About the only advice I can offer (beyond the excellent information already posted above) is to ask you what happens if everything bombs, you loose your shirt, and have to go back to working in your old career field? Are you currently in a field (say, programming, for example) where a 3 to 5 year absence would be enough to make your skills "stale" in the job market? If so, then that's a serious drawback.
On the other hand, if you have skills that age well and you don't think you'd have much trouble finding another job in the event you had to give up lasers, then the decision becomes a lot easier, doesn't it?
Adam