Daily Inspiration Quote by Jerry Pournelle

A sly indictment disguised as process talk, Pournelle's line turns bureaucratic trivia into a character sketch of a whole field. Naming Asimov as "the reason" rules changed is less about Isaac Asimov's biography than about his gravitational pull: a writer so prolific, so institutionally present, that an organization meant to represent many voices found itself rewriting procedures around one towering personality. It suggests a system that couldn't absorb celebrity without bending.

The subtext is classic Pournelle: irritation at soft power. "Changed some rules" sounds neutral until you hear the implied complaint: rules are supposed to be impersonal, but fame creates exceptions, loopholes, or reforms tailored to a single star. In a professional body like the SFWA, that can mean membership categories, voting eligibility, ethics codes, even the informal norms that determine who gets heard. Asimov becomes shorthand for the problem of a charismatic insider who is everywhere at once - panels, newsletters, committees, backchannels - and whose sheer presence makes governance feel like crowd control.

The kicker is the second clause: "I'm not convinced we changed it for the best". Pournelle isn't merely reminiscing; he's reopening the case file. It's the language of institutional regret, implying that in trying to manage one outsized figure, SFWA may have traded flexibility for rigidity, or fairness for punitive caution. The quote works because it frames fandom's favorite myth - the benevolent grandmaster - alongside the less romantic truth: communities don't just celebrate giants; they contort around them, and the contortions can outlast the giant.