1.  If everybody went out and decided to play poker for a year, almost none of them would make the kind of money you're suggesting.  It is absurd to suggest that everybody is "virtually guaranteed" to make $45-$60 an hour playing poker.  An ESPN article estimates the number of people making a living playing poker at 600 to 3000 a year in the entire USA.   http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/page2/story?page=lovinger/050111

2.  So, you could buy tapes and study languages with a tutor.  Or, you could pay for a college class - a similar cost, with more upside.  Also, most people I've met don't have a few thousand dollars just laying around a year after high school to travel the world.  But many universities offer junior year abroad.

3-8.  I agree with most of what you suggest here, but there is no reason you can't do all of these things while in college.  In fact, most people do these things in college, except probably #7.

9.  Not everybody can start a successful business.  The success rate of new businesses is less than 50%.  A failed business can put somebody into bankruptcy.  Are you advocating a society where half of us declare bankruptcy after starting a failed business, and have no college degree?

Your path to success is unique, but it is extremely exceptional.  This will not work for everybody.  In fact, it's highly unlikely to work for most people.  You have suggested spending a year playing poker as "virtually guaranteed" to make people money.  You often assume people have extra $5000 or more laying around to try things like poker as a career or traveling the world or starting a business.