It's easy to rag on the gate agents. I'll agree some of them are horrendous AND rude. However, did you ever stop to think how they're treated by some JSers?

I was a gate agent for a very short time at EWR. I'll never forget this one TOTD who walked up to me and snarled how he was tired, just got off a long flight from (insert international city here) and had better get a JS on this flight to MCO or he was "going to kill somebody."