The French commercial van and truck drivers (many of them sole proprietors) would have still raised a major stink, have no doubt, but not as big and widespread as we’re seeing now.
Macron and the dwindling number of somewhat responsible world leaders recognise the hard fact that eventually everyone is going to have to make hard sacrifices if we want to limit CO2 emissions. This was likely a test to see what was possible in this regard, to see where the rubber hits the road between the environment and the economy for the average Western citizen. The result doesn’t bode well for the planet, and that’s before we factor in the denialists and Know-Nothings.
