It seems that he's become less practical and more radical over time, though. When asked, he doesn't program very much any more, devoting his time instead to championing free software in an idea that some (such as Alexey) would argue isn't practical.
What im trying to say is, if he doesnt code anymore, its probably because he doesnt think that would be a necessary contribution anymore.
Or maybe he is simply tired of coding :)
Wouldn't that be better than being just a gadfly? At least that's my impression; RMS will appear on some group or maillist, drop a bomb, tell everyone they're doing it wrong, and then disappear while the flamewar blazes, accomplishing nothing constructive in the process.
And, in this community, everyone's status is based primarily on their programming, including Richard Stallman's.
No he didn't! He wrote a text editor, a compiler and a library. It's not like he's the only person ever to do that. He also had a lot of help from others. He isn't the sole author of EMACS, GCC or glibc.
Perhaps you should ask Socrates.