Some of them think like that, but it's more the people with families and the attitude of 'it won't happen to me' that rankles- one hell of a gamble to take. Of course you hope to never have to use insurance, in which case yes it's money 'wasted', but if you do need it then it becomes the best...
Slightly off on a tangent but in my line of work do a fair bit of life/health insurance... and can never understand why people are so unwilling to pay for it. Like you say it is is massive gamble and people are gambling with their ability to maintain a standard of living in the face of illness...