One of the most difficult things about being an editor is that, from time to time, one is forced to deal with tough issues, controversial hot-button topics that threaten to tear the community apart. Herald Entertainment fears that we are nowin the midst of just such a controversy and that the time has come for us to take a stand. The feud about which Ispeak is, of course, that which has brought the music industry to the brink of civil war: N'Sync versus the Backstreet Boys.

However divisive the issue may be, however many readers we may alienate, let our stance on the subject be known: Backstreet Boys are way cooler than N'Sync.

If you just look at the evidence, the Backstreet Boys win out in every category, be it style, lyrics, dance moves or just a certain intangible savoir faire. Frankly, it seems that when you really take a look at the bands, any question about who's better evaporates and it's quite clear who comes out on top.

Come on, does anyone really think there's an N'Sync song that even approaches "Ain't Nothing But a Heartache?" Lyrics like "You are my fire/ My one desire" are like pages torn from the Boys' very souls. And what does N'Sync have? "Tearin' Up My Heart?" Pretty weak, guys. "God Must Have Spent a Little More Time on You?" I don't think so. If God spent any more time on N'Sync, it was only to make them extra sucky.

When it comes to videos, it's the same story. When the Boys stride through the airport in the video for "Ain't Nothing But a Heartache," they've got enough style to make Ricky Martin look awkward and uncoordinated. Meanwhile, the straightjackets worn by N'Sync as they stumble around the asylum in the "I Drive Myself Crazy" video seem all too appropriate.

And do we even have to mention their looks? Compared to Backstreet, N'Sync looks like a police lineup. Backstreet encompasses every type of look one could possibly want in a boy band, from Nick, the clean-cut nice boy, to Kevin, the rough-edged rebel with a hint of danger in his eyes to A.J., whose wild hair and crazy antics amuse us all.

N'Sync offers little more than pale imitations of the Boys' unique style; Justin is a pretty boy who's not that pretty, Joey's the tough guy (whatever) and as for Chris, with his multicolored dredlocks he's just plain ridiculous.

So please, let's put an end to this boy-band feud once and for all. If anyone out there still insists on saying that N'Sync is even a shadow of the group that Backstreet Boys is, Iurge them to think it through. In a few months' time, N'Sync will be back hanging out at the Tallahasse mall, but Backstreet has a talent and charisma the likes of which the world hasn't seen since the heyday of - dare Isay it? - The New Kids on the Block.

So when the Backstreet Boys take the stage at the Kohl Center this fall, you can bet I'll be there, front row center, and you can be damn sure I won't be thinking about any weak-ass Backstreet wannabes. Those who attend the Backstreet Boys show are certain to experience the event of the year, and as for going to an N'Sync show, well, that ain't nothing but a mistake.