# Would this be called trolling

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-this-be-called-trolling/621752>\
**Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\
**Created:** [May 13, 2012, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-this-be-called-trolling/621752 "2012-05-13T04:43:34Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 4\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\
**Post date:** [August 16, 2012, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-this-be-called-trolling/621752/21 "2012-08-16T20:40:36Z")

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Got someone suspended for “threadshitting” on a board I’m one nefariously.

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**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\
**Post date:** [August 16, 2012, 11:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-this-be-called-trolling/621752/22 "2012-08-16T23:37:59Z")

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What about the most recent example: **umkay**?

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**Author:** ![lavenderviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/cdc98d/32.png) [@lavenderviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lavenderviolet)\
**Post date:** [August 16, 2012, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-this-be-called-trolling/621752/23 "2012-08-16T23:42:15Z")

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I am reminded of this blog: [http://warriorelihoax.wordpress.com/](http://warriorelihoax.wordpress.com/)  
That blog has now moved on to documenting other tales of people faking cancer, but the originally story - the"Warrior Eli" hoax - is bizarre just in how incredibly elaborate it became. A young girl created an incredibly elaborate fake online presence (over the course of YEARS!) about a family with a child who had cancer. As far as anyone can tell, she never scammed anyone out of money (though she did have internet affairs with some women who thought they were hooking up with the married dad of the cancer kid). It appears to all just be done out of an extreme mental illness.  
Personally, I wouldn’t call it a troll. To me, a troll is a person who makes things up for the explicit purpose of provoking people and causing trouble. This sort of fake seems just plain old crazy.

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**Author:** ![Seanette](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/seanette/32/9139_2.png) [@Seanette](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Seanette)\
**Post date:** [August 17, 2012, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-this-be-called-trolling/621752/24 "2012-08-17T05:51:16Z")

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There actually is a name for a lot of these cases: [Munchausen by Internet](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C3%BCnchausen_by_Internet).

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