In his speech this afternoon, Governor David Paterson had one word to describe the state of our state: "Perilous."

The word isn't to be taken lightly, considering that most of these kinds of speeches are feel-good stumping.

But once Paterson got past telling most of us what we already know - the economy is bad and getting worse, people are losing their jobs, and many residents don't have access to health-care services - he put forward some pretty ambitious plans. And hit a few optimistic notes.

"This is no time to fear," Paterson said. "This is a time for action. This is a time for courage. This is a time for hope."

For Greater Rochester, there was some really good news in this speech, if Paterson can make his proposals happen. He wants to aggressively promote plug-in electric hybrid research and manufacturing in Upstate. That means creating a research consortium for battery and electric storage research. We're way ahead of the game here, thanks to the General Motors fuel cell R&D facility in Honeoye Falls, the Delphi facility in Henrietta, and ongoing research at RIT.

Paterson clearly gets it that energy and the economy are intertwined. And he gets that developing renewable energy technology and building the infrastructure to generate and support it are good for New York. So he's set renewable energy goals and wants to see heftier incentives and financing mechanisms to make that happen. Paterson's energy plan got immediate backing from the New York League of Conservation Voters, who issued a press release before he was through giving his speech.

His plan for a $350 million student loan fund is a good one. For my generation, a college education is almost a necessity. More often than not, even a $10 an hour job is unattainable without some sort of post-high school education.

He also made an impressive challenge to members of Congress when he said they need to pass stronger financial-industry regulations. If they don't, he said, "I will." Take that, Wall Street.

The legislators clapped, and clapped often, during the speech. But how long until they turn on the governor? How long until the start saying "no" to his proposals? What will Paterson actually be able to pull off?