The smoke of burning buildings, trash and even one unfortunate police officer perfumed the air on May Day in France. It's officially springtime in Paris, but whether the promise of a new harvest will bear any ripe fruit for President Emmanuel Macron remains doubtful as the revolt against his neo-liberal regime continues to rage.

As people across Europe danced around the Maypole to mark the coming of Spring after another harsh winter mired by economic deprivation, the people of France did their own form of traditional dance, that of rioting against an out-of-touch government behind the walls of a palace.