It's quite simple:

For 21c/egg, I am happy to compromise on nutrition - I am content with the fact that the chickens whose eggs I eat were not served with caviar. I am even happy to take a certain level of health risk (and for now it is not even established that the vendor does not maintain health standards: perhaps they actually are in touch with the so-called "health-authorities", or perhaps they keep even better standards without bothering to invite those blood-suckers to their premises).

What I am not willing to compromise, is becoming a party to torture - no matter even if I received the eggs for free or even if I got paid to take them.

Yuyutsu,

I certainly hope you do all your own food preparation then - because I can assure you that any commercially cooked foodstuff containing eggs almost certainly contains cage eggs. And you'd be surprised at just how many things eggs go into (some wines, for example) - not to mention all those products you'll have to give up because they 'may contain traces of (cage) eggs'.

Yabby:

...Interesting yes! But pre “coccidiostats”, was the fracture point between free range (intensive sheds), and cage birds. The cage system was instigated to combat the devastation of coccidiosis on flocks; it worked! Now with coccidiostats, the cages are less imperative to animal hygiene, however it is well to remember the reason for cages in an historic sense.

...Cages gave the animal a freedom from disease, it gave the farmer greater economy and ease of maintenance of his flock, and most heavenly, clean eggs!

I wonder what do-gooders have to say about wild bird populations, like these penguins, inhabiting what seem to be grossly overcrowded rookeries:

http://artwolfe.photoshelter.com/gallery-image/South-Georgia-Island/G0000A89Ve7xjrhc/I0000rRvwmKyTffc

Has anyone ever read them their rights?

Shame!