RDF Site Summary, the first version of RSS, was created by Guha at Netscape in March 1999 for use on the My.Netscape.Com portal. This version became known as RSS 0.9.[4] In July 1999, Dan Libby of Netscape produced a new version, RSS 0.91,[2] which simplified the format by removing RDF elements and incorporating elements from Dave Winer's scriptingNews syndication format.[7] Libby also renamed RSS "Rich Site Summary" and outlined further development of the format in a "futures document".[8]
in short, david winer works on things in isolation and doesn't care for negative feedback, appreciates his own ideas and pursuing them at full pace. boo hoo.
if you don't like his ideas, don't listen to his ideas. if you don't think an idea of his is worth implementing but you see lots of people implementing it, then make the case for why it's bad.
This makes me think of experiences, both personal and observed, in which attributing components of a product or body of work to oneself is made difficult by the complexity of the work, and actual contribution made.
For example, explaining ones contribution to a complex research project, depending on the audience, must be carefully worded. Usually the result is simpler to explain than the components. Thus, a bad explanation might give you more credit than is deserved.
I'm not sure about this particular case, but it could be a similar situation, or it could be that this guy felt his contribution was particularly significant.
