Are we any better than drug dealers?

[AQuestion]

I've been thinking recently about the ethics of professional poker playing, and there have been several good posts about the subject in the Psychology forum recently.

I play in home games for a living while attending graduate school. While I do enjoy the analytical and psychological aspects of Hold'em, I have grown increasingly disgusted with the addiction and depression that I see among the weak players in the game. While some of these players behave shamefully and elicit less sympathy, I can't help feeling badly for the nice players who seem to spiral in a cycle of addiction and lose twice the money that I make (or more). I continue by telling myself that I'm only going to play for a living for the two years in graduate school. After all, where else could I find a job with flexible hours that pays $42 an hour?

To the extent that we as poker players rely upon gambling addicts to make our living, how are we different than drug dealers? For anyone outside the range of legalized gambling, it is mandatory to play in underground, illicit home games where we feast upon the vices of the addicted gamblers. Although there are no physical effects of addicted gambling, the psychological, social and financial repercussions of addiction seem the same as those that arise from drug addiction.

I would especially like to hear from those who favor drug legalization to see if they perceive any difference between drug addiction and gambling addiction. I don't know much about the medical side of things, but perhaps Dr. Schoonmaker can comment on whether the biological components of various addictions are similar.

In the end, though, I haven't really acted on these reservations. I have not allowed these thoughts to penetrate my game and play unmercifully against them. After all, I need to do this to subsidize tuition and maintain a comfortable lifestyle while being a student. Or do I? Is this just the easy way out? For $42/hr.