The owners of a spec aren't its creators. It's the users. You don't need Gruber's stamp any more than you need mine. It's easy to get confused. The creators of open source projects are often intimately involved with the interests of the users. But it's not the case here. The active stakeholders seem aligned. That's all you need. Is there any real dissent besides Gruber's inactivity? (Users include both sides of the fence - people implementing the translation and people writing in Markdown)