TAMPA, Fla. — The Republican National Convention was duly convened and immediately adjourned Monday afternoon, amid waning fears of major weather problems. Tropical Storm Isaac was usurping headlines all day, but otherwise had scant impact on Tampa. The RNC schedule had to be compacted down to three days from the original four — which meant no Donald Trump or Gov. Bobby Jindal. But in an effort to court the Latino vote, it appears the scheduled daily Hispanic briefing remains on the program.

TAMPA, Florida—Half carnival, half war zone, this western Florida city was all decked out for the Republican National Convention Sunday. Barricades and fences cordoned off the Tampa Bay Times Forum where the major events would be held, while mounted police and bomb-sniffing dogs patrolled the streets.

About the only indisputably true thing either candidate has said during an unbearably vicious campaign is that this election is about radically different visions of America. President Barack Obama is selling a picture of a country mired deep in class warfare, where the rich are trying to manipulate the system for their own gain and everyone else’s detriment. He, and his government, are all that stands in front of a wealthy oligarchy determined to plunder America. Challenger Mitt Romney paints a Norman Rockwell scene of grit, faith and hard work, threatened by a power-hungry, free-spending, “European”-style president who does not understand the values that made America great.

GIRARD, Pa. — Welcome to Main Street, USA, with all its charms and warts. The local eatery, called the “Girad Dinor” (sic) features “home cookin’” and offers a full range of discounts for local patrons. Fishermen and hunters receive 10 percent off their bill, any day of the week, as does clergy (the sign did not specify denomination). Seniors get 10 percent off, too, but “only on Wednesdays!” leading the casual visitor assume that the custom of the gray-haired set as not as desirable as that of the doubtless hungrier seekers of animal hides or human souls.