Some things never change. Paging Marie Antoinette. Let them eat cake [1]:
Anti-government protesters clashed with French police on the Champs-Elysees in Paris on Saturday, leaving the famed avenue shrouded in tear gas on another day of demonstrations against President Emmanuel Macron.
Some of France’s top political scientists say the grievances expressed by the protesters show the hallmarks of a populist movement, representing a rejection of the country’s out-of-touch elite.
The anger centers around a hike in the diesel fuel tax, which has gone up seven euro cents per liter — nearly 30 cents per gallon — and will keep climbing in coming years, according to Transport Minister Elisabeth Borne. The tax on gasoline is also to increase four euro cents. Currently, gasoline costs roughly 1.64 euros a liter in Paris — $7.06 a gallon — which is slightly more than diesel.
Hat tip, Robert, Small Dead Animals [2].
Private jets for the anointed elite. Ox carts for the peasants.