[ZERO] Paris is crippled this week by constant protests designed to throttle traffic and shit down basic services, and the majority of the mob is comprised of far left activists including Antifa. The Paris actions are coupled with nationwide demonstrations that saw sporadic clashes with police who fired volleys of tear gas. Activists argue that eight years of leadership by France’s "business-friendly president" Emmanuel Macron have benefited too few people and hurt too many.
The protests ignited in response to austerity measures issued by the struggling government, including cuts to socialist programs and an increase in the national retirement age.
Macron’s opponents complain that taxpayer-funded public services - free schools and public hospitals, subsidized health care, unemployment benefits and other safety nets that are cherished in France - are being eroded. France has crawled from one crisis to another since he dissolved parliament in 2024, triggering a legislative election that stacked Parliament’s lower house with critics of the president.
Left-wing parties and their supporters want higher taxes for the wealthy and businesses to pay more to help rein in France’s debts, rather than see public spending cuts that they contend will hit low-paid and middle-class workers. France's national debt was reported at $3.6 trillion US by the end of 2024, growing by nearly $1 trillion since 2023. This is over 100% of the country's annual GDP.
Placards at the Paris demonstration read: "Tax the rich."