Governor David Paterson says state lawmakers have agreed on most of a plan to narrow a $10 billion budget deficit. All that remains to be settled to patch up the ship of state while it floats in a sea of red ink are $800 million in cuts in education and health care — the two biggest parts of the budget.

Not encouraged by the hapless governor's pronouncement? Bet against New York State's financial survival. InTrade, the Ireland-based trading market on all sorts of issues, opened bets yesterday on whether — and when — the state government will go into default.

The cuts are already bad enough. Leaving aside the poor, hungry, and homeless, now it's students who are being hammered, and not by alcohol. New York City itself is suffering from budget problems, despite the fact that Wall Street appears to be pretty healthy. For the first time ever, New York City's community colleges are being forced to abandon their "all-are welcome admissions policies."