I think unless you have had experience of addiction yourself or have had to watch someone close to you struggle and fail, then it's too easy to judge. I grew up with a cousin who was more like a brother to me. He was a bit older than me but he'd come on holiday with us and spent loads of time at our house when I was a kid. He was really intelligent, brilliant with figures - which contributed to his downfall really - and as soft as anything. His life was ruined, utterly ruined by a gambling addiction and he never beat it. He lost everything and everyone, and ended up doing several spells in jail over the years due to petty thieving from employers to fund his gambling. He died early - in his early 50s - from a brain haemorrhage undoubtedly caused by stress-related high blood pressure. Despite all this, he really was a lovely fella, just utterly driven and controlled by the desperate need to gamble. It was as strong as any other addiction I've heard of and I pity anyone stuck in its destructive cycle.