I remember 2020 and the deaths. The US never locked down; ask anyone from Italy or Spain what that looked like. Closing schools was necessary to protect teachers and staff, as well as children. The US failed by not being organized to improve air filtering in schools. Protecting people wasn’t wrong.
In Italy 65-70% of the workforce wasn't locked down. The people who were could go out every day with a self-certification no one checked. Self-certifiSong (a love story) was a hit.
And when California “locked down” everyone could go out at will. People use the term to mean “things were closed”. But stores were open! There were special hours for over 65! Mail and delivery services continued! After a little many restaurants switched to delivery… even high end ones.