It's been my observation that too often managers will try to not rock the boat and try to please as many as possible when there are decisions to be made.
This was articulated in an article posted here:
http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2009/11/25/the-benefits-of-pissing-people-off/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed:%20timferriss%20(The%20Blog%20of%