Writer's Block: Bird by Bird
No, it is not cruel. If you had birds, you would understand. When you have a caged bird, you are their flock. You are their family and their friends and their loved ones. They will sometimes talk to birds outside, probably just because they hear something with a sound similar to theirs. However, it is not cruel to keep them in cages. Tame birds and wild birds are incredibly different and if you let a tame bird go because you thought you were doing it a favor by setting it free, it would almost positively end up dead one way or another. Don't go thinking that people with pet birds are horrible people, keeping birds in cages for their own personal pleasure. Birds enjoy being in captivity, considering they generally have good company, they get fed and watered, and their are no predators (if the owner is careful).