TRAFFIC CAMERAS — Generator of revenue, or tool for public safety? Well, see what seems most important in this account:

But on yesterday’s “Ask the Mayor” program on WTOP Radio, Mr. Williams said looming fiscal problems forced the city to get creative in closing a potential $323 million budget deficit.

“The only reason we’re looking at the enforcement with revenue figures is because we’re in such a bind now,” Mr. Williams said.

D.C. Council member Phil Mendelson, at-large Democrat, who has been skeptical of the city’s electronic law-enforcement programs, said the latest expansion is a clear indication that the city is starting to see the cameras as revenue sources.

Yeah, sure, he talks about safety, too, but. . . . Traffic and parking laws in just about every city are about money, not safety. Why should DC be any different?