I think that Bill Owens just called for the end of state regulation of the telecom market. No, not Governor Bill Owens. Admiral Bill Owens, Vice Chairman and CEO of Nortel, who is the keynote speaker this morning made the comment as a vision for how to create billions of dollars of value in our society. Make sure to catch the webcast of this speech when it gets posted to our website.

Owens also asked a question that caused a disturbing reaction, at least for me. He asked, among our political leaders, how many have a deep intuitive vision and understanding that telecom and IT revolutions can have a profound effect on growth and social welfare? My sense, not nearly enough.