The best way to deal with a troll is to not feed it. That's why the trolls' dilemma exists.

It is basically an insistence on the person being addressed (or group addressed) to respond or be considered defeated.

The urge to not have a default to defeat is strong for many, and so the trolls' dilemma may easily get a response.

This is the dilemma, though. To respond, the troll wins, but to not respond, the troll scores an arbitrary and often false 'victory'.

It is often used as a last resort once the troll has been exposed, or as a strong opening bait to hook the victims early.

When you eat dirt for the first time and leave your family to build a shack in the woods