I brought it up here and here, and then overtly raised the question here: why does it seem that the terror threats always seem to increase right before an election?

It appears that I now have my answer. The New Republic has an article up detailing the research of three psychologists who’ve discovered that behavior can be altered to favor one candidate over another when the voters’ are encouraged (subconsciously, of course) of their mortality.

In their experiments, Solomon, Greenberg, and Pyszczynski make a good case that mortality reminders from September 11 enhanced Bush’s popularity through November 2004. But, on the basis of their research, it is possible to draw even broader conclusions about U.S. politics after September 11. Mortality reminders not only enhanced the appeal of Bush’s political style but also deepened and broadened the appeal of the conservative social positions that Republicans had been running on.

Scary stuff, man. Go read it. Understand what they’re doing. Subconscious manipulation stops working once you’re conscious of it.