The IRS is celebrating the results of an AP poll that ranks the TSA as the most hated arm of the federal government. More than anything, Americans apparently hate being inconvenienced by seemingly pointless and arbitrary security checks.

The AP poll, conducted Monday through Wednesday, found that the more people travel, the less they like TSA.

But it also found that 53% of air travelers think TSA does a “very” or “somewhat” good job.

The inconvenience of security was the top complaint of air travelers, mentioned by 31% of those who had taken at least one trip in the past year. That figure rose to 40% for those who have taken five to 10 trips.

TSA’s parent agency, the Department of Homeland Security, also ranked at the bottom of an index of consumer satisfaction released this week, supplanting the IRS as the prime subject of grumbling in that survey. The authoritative American Customer Satisfaction Index questioned 10,000 people about their experiences with the federal government.

But it’s all our fault. We just don’t appreciate that the TSA is working overtime to bring us a Safe And Secure Society ^(TM) using complex science-driven techniques that we should not mock.

Behavioral observation and document checking are proving to be the most successful in rooting out would-be terrorists, [Administrator Kip Hawley] said. Screeners do catch people who try to bring guns onto planes. “But they’re not terrorists. They’re just stupid,” he said. Terrorists know better than to try to bring prohibited items through security, he said.

That’s right. The fidgety terrorist with the forged passport, he’s feeling fine because he knew to leave the Purell at home.

Poll: Travelers dislike TSA as much as IRS [AP]
(Photo: Getty Images)

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