Covid is like roaches, there's never just one. One case turns up, but meanwhile that individual infected dozens others who are not symptomatic yet. But with a lockdown the contagion spreads less quickly, and you can do contact tracing and isolate the affected people. Indeed, the headline from two days ago is "Delta outbreak spreading rapidly as cases jump"

Meanwhile at my regional institution the students are beginning to grumble. Let's go back online, they say, too many instructors cancel lecture because they are sick with covid and too many students can't attend class because they in bed with covid. That's what excess freedom looks like.