A better way to help the homeless

Chris Christie wants to end homelessness in New Jersey.

So he's appointing a task force.

To be fair to New Jersey's governor, he's also boosting aid to shelters.

But he ought to expand the availability of alcoholism and addiction treatment, too.

Addicts, alcoholics and people with mental illness are a significant percentage of the chronically homeless population. More treatment dollars will get – and potentially keep – these sick men and women off the streets.

To his considerable credit, Christie wants the state to offer addiction treatment to more nonviolent offenders.

Offering a similar option to people living in, say, Camden's "Tent City" would give at least some a chance to  recover from what the governor himself rightly calls a disease.