What is the difference between a troll and a legitimate question,and how would anyone other than the original poster know ?
It is more a pattern of behaviour than a once off incident.
In addition, the manner in which the question is asked (phrased) is often indicitive of the purpose behind it.
With practice, one tends to learn to tell the difference - and the sad thing is that the Mods get plenty of practice
Grim
Good question; a troll posts a contentious question for the reaction, not because they hold (or intend to defend) the opinion; usually this is revealed by the content of subsequent posts on the topic.