As a cold dusk fell on police slugging it out with violent high-vis-jacketed demonstrators on Place de la République in Paris last Thursday, there was a distinct feeling of déjà-vu.
The "populist" gilets jaunes, according to analysts, were meant to have nothing to do with public sector and "protected" employees who were protesting against the end of their cosy pension deals. Last week's nationwide strike, France's largest for years, was supposedly all about traditional unions flexing their muscle at last. What did the gilets jaunes have to do with it?
