The act of trolling is not one that should not be entertained if you hope to uphold standards and expect those being trolled not to act in response.
Respect is a two way street, the individual who is quoted and their side kick, have a habit of trolling elsewhere and simply did what they do best when they do not like someones opinion. This is nothing new or strange, except perhaps where bias and a lack of objectivity exist to see the obvious trolling.