Gov. Dannel P. Malloy says Connecticut is long past the time when it can afford to pontificate and debate about the good or evil of legalized gambling. Past governors may have had the luxury of happily accepting the revenues the two tribal casinos generate, without having to fight for and work with an industry that not everyone holds in high esteem.

But in an era when the administration has to fight for every job and source of revenue to meet its fiscal needs, Gov. Malloy said he views the tribal-run Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort casinos as successful businesses the state has a keen interest in helping.

"We have an industry to protect," the governor told us in a meeting with the editorial board.

It's the right attitude.

In the past fiscal year the two casinos collectively shipped $360 million in slot revenues to the Connecticut treasury. While that is off from peak revenues of $430.5 million a few years back, it is still an impressive number. More importantly, the two casinos employ about 17,000 people and are major economic engines for the state and region.

But the casinos continue to face new challenges. Where once they had the playing field to themselves, Foxwoods and Mohegan Sun face increasing competition as neighboring states open the way for casino operations. The prospect for a different sort of competition arrived recently when the U.S. Justice Department issued a ruling that states have the constitutional authority to approve and regulate online gambling operations.

It's an interesting development and something not foreseen when Gov. Lowell P. Weicker Jr. first negotiated the compact with the Mashantucket tribe, giving it exclusive gaming rights in Connecticut, a restriction the tribe later agreed to amend to include the Mohegan tribe.

Potentially, we suppose, Connecticut could raise the legal argument whether gambling online, with no physical location, is covered by the tribal compacts' restrictions on competition. But such a debate would waste valuable time and give other states a jump in developing an Internet market. That is why it was good to hear Gov. Malloy concede that the compacts will likely have to be updated, essentially making the two tribes partners with the state as Connecticut moves toward legalizing online gambling.

He has assigned Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman to lead the discussions that include tribal representatives and state Lottery officials. The governor sees the potential for online gambling incentives that would encourage players to visit Connecticut's casinos. New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has also talked about using such incentive tie-ins to bolster the Atlantic City casinos in that state.

Gov. Malloy told us he expects action in this upcoming legislative session. Critics might say many things about the governor, but the failure to act decisively cannot fairly be among them. He is correct in concluding that being among the first states to develop a popular online gaming model could provide long-term benefits. Connecticut is also likely to see state Lottery operations moved online, but doing so without providing direct competition that the tribes consider inappropriate will be among the challenges in negotiating a way forward.

Probably no one could have envisioned this reality when a bingo hall opened at Mashantucket on July 5, 1986, but it's a reality the governor recognizes he must address.