# Good trolling bad trolling?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-trolling-bad-trolling/962535>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [April 8, 2022, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-trolling-bad-trolling/962535 "2022-04-08T17:07:30Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\
**Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-trolling-bad-trolling/962535/1 "2022-04-08T17:07:31Z")

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Very often ( several times a day) I will become curious about something I know very little about. I sometimes try to open a conversation on these topics usually with very limited success. I feel like I am trolling but not doing anything wrong. What is trolling??

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**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\
**Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-trolling-bad-trolling/962535/2 "2022-04-08T17:26:03Z")

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Bad Trolling: So, I got this cute kitten yesterday and I was wondering if I should get her declawed on all four paws, or just the front two?

Seriously though, if you’re honestly looking for information you’re not trolling, although it might appear so to your readers.

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**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\
**Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 5:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-trolling-bad-trolling/962535/3 "2022-04-08T17:28:10Z")

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> [@Procrustus](#):
>
> Seriously though, if you’re honestly looking for information you’re not trolling, although it might appear so to your readers.

Nobody has complained, sometimes I just feel like that is what I am doing. I will attempt to frame a topic as a question so as not to be trolling when in reality I am hoping it will spawn a conversation on a given topic with no particular direction.

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**Author:** ![iiandyiiii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/iiandyiiii/32/7924_2.png) [@iiandyiiii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iiandyiiii)\
**Post date:** [April 8, 2022, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-trolling-bad-trolling/962535/4 "2022-04-08T17:29:17Z")

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Trolling is trying to piss people off, rile people up, cause drama and controversy, etc. Sometimes pissing people off, or causing drama, will be a byproduct of a good-faith post or topic, and that’s not trolling; trolling is when your primary motivation is the drama and pissing people off.

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**Author:** ![naita](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/naita/32/5862_2.png) [@naita](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/naita)\
**Post date:** [April 9, 2022, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/good-trolling-bad-trolling/962535/5 "2022-04-09T14:18:29Z")

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> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#):
>
> I sometimes try to open a conversation on these topics usually with very limited success.

Could you cite an example you felt had limited success and one that you thought was successful? That would let us know where you are actually coming from with this topic.