RE: Sean Thomas is waving his flag.
AS I read it, Sean Thomas is REPORTING what’s happening in France.
I recall from Roger Scruton in his Aesthetics of Music that when we listen to something, we don't need to know its source to hear it. There is a certain autonomy of sound, autonomous at least from it's source. Beethoven's 5th comes through a speaker--never mind that it once sounded of the walls in Budapest. Historians and property owners are more interested in sourcing material. All the same, this autonomous facet in communication is very curious. Is that relevant? Maybe not, but as I read it, soon enough Mr. Sean Thomas needn't be able to say either way.