I am writing this in a Starbucks while waiting for a meeting to start in Boston. I do not drink much coffee, but find Starbucks is a great place to do email with their T-Mobile WiFi connectivity.

Last night Leslie Stahl of "60 Minutes" covered the topic of online gambling. (As an aside, I met Leslie Stahl about 8 years ago when she came to the Mecklermedia offices in Westport, Connecticut to do a report with writer Andrew Kantor on what "one could find on the Internet." We have come a long way since those days. Kantor, by the way has a blog.)

I came away from the report with the same feelings I have had for years -- that online gambling should be legalized in the USA. Some facts from the report: 64 countries allow legalized online gambling operations on their soil - this includes England.

I was humored to watch Senator Jon Kyl, Republican of Arizona, aggressively appeal to Stahl that legislation he is proposing will work in stopping online gambling in the USA. Methinks the Senator does not use a computer nor does he comprehend the Internet. There is absolutely no way that any law will stop Americans from gambling online. Kyl is living in a dreamworld. Americans are what makes online gambling the success that it is. He should drop his opposition and instead create legislation that allows online gambling, but at the same time has rigorous protection clauses to protect against underage gambling and other safety factors for the customer.

The USA cannot stop online gambling. So let's create the best environment possible for what is a thriving industry.