Not at all. Interns and residents have a reasonably high probability [1] of becoming fairly well-compensated licensed physicians if they choose to follow their program through to the end. This isn't an argument about long and even grueling apprenticeships with modest compensation. It's about how even those who make it through such an apprenticeship in some professions will mostly not find a job at the end--which isn't the case with doctors.
BTW, I'm not sure I believe the drug dealer/actor/pro athlete thought really applies to academia--even if it's true that PhD degrees in many fields probably don't have a great ROI and aren't likely to result in a tenured position.
[1] I don't know the numbers but I have no reason to think a lot of people, especially from better programs, are forced out during internship or residency.
BTW, I'm not sure I believe the drug dealer/actor/pro athlete thought really applies to academia--even if it's true that PhD degrees in many fields probably don't have a great ROI and aren't likely to result in a tenured position.
[1] I don't know the numbers but I have no reason to think a lot of people, especially from better programs, are forced out during internship or residency.