Poker ... Isnt that Gambling?

Yes, Poker is a form of Gambling but honestly is poker really bad? I mean at my school alone there have been two cases that people have won half a million dollars by going into tournaments and winning. Now you may say its strokes of luck but poker also takes skill and shouldn't be viewed as bad because poker is actually a fun game to play which stimulates the mind. I mean I will put in about 50 $ every couple month's (if I need too) and thats it. Because for me poker is just a game and if I can make money by playing this game that I enjoy , the better for me.

Also Some people actually make livings off playing online poker. One example is the person who lives next door to me, he actually makes around 30 $ an hour playing poker online. Now I am not saying that I can just go and do the same thing because in every job you have to learn , which he did. Last time I went to his house he had about 50 books which he had all read.

So Since I am Turning 18 tomorrow I will add 50$ to my party poker account and see where that takes me.