Professor I. Nelson Rose is one of the leading legal minds in the internet gambling industry. He has over 1,000 published works and has testified in gambling-related cases around the United States and around the world. He gave Poker News Daily his thoughts on the events unfolding in Kentucky surrounding the seizure and potential forfeiture of 141 internet gambling domain names by Governor Steve Beshear, whose order was recently upheld by Judge Thomas Wingate.

Frankfort, Kentucky - A judge yesterday declined to order 141 gambling Web sites forfeited to the state, saying he needed more time to understand the complexities of what experts call an unprecedented effort to crack down on illegal Internet gambling. Instead, Franklin Circuit Judge Thomas Wingate ordered attorneys representing both sides to file briefs on some of the issues and scheduled a hearing for Oct. 7.

Kentucky Gov. Steve Beshear is trying one last time to put a referendum on the ballot to find out if Kentucky voters want casino gambling in the state. The odds appear slim, but Beshear rallied a number of politicians, educators and business leaders to pressure legislators to pass a bill. Flanked by 20 legislative supporters, Beshear held a press conference in the State Capitol Rotunda on Monday, saying there was time for one last legislative push.

His casino empire, his personal finances and his integrity all are under siege. He recently lost his only New Jersey casino license in a high-stakes case that has reverberated throughout the gambling industry. And regulators in the four states where he is still in the gambling business — Indiana, Louisiana, Mississippi and Nevada — are investigating or reviewing his operations.

Bourbon County, Kentucky - Arthur Hancock, a fourth-generation thoroughbred breeder, pointed out his office window on a recent morning to illustrate a fundamental difference between horse racing and casino gambling. A shimmering copper sun was rising over his 1,800-acre bluegrass farm. A clutch of lithe prize ponies grazed under a gunmetal sky. "Look out there," said Hancock, 64. "This is a whole different world."

Frankfort, Kentucky - A Northern Kentucky legislator whose suburban Cincinnati district is within miles of Indiana riverboat casinos said yesterday that he doesn't see the rash of social problems that some opponents of expanded gambling predict.Rep. Arnold Simpson, D-Covington, questioned casino gambling opponents during their testimony to a House task force on the issue.