Governor Paterson just finished up his first State of the State speech, reminding attendees of his favorite theme—fiscal calamity—and averred that “the state of our state is perilous.” In contrast to speeches of years past in better times, Mr. Paterson laid out relatively few new initiatives that would come at any substantial cost. In terms of economic development, his calls for new revenue for projects were confined to the federal government, asking Congress to pass a stimulus package “by the end of the month.” He devoted much of his speech to issues of energy, asking for an "energy revolution" that...