DOG DAYS? Paul Farhi and Mark Leibovich lament the effect of the contemporary news cycle on the summer months. (Hat tip: Betsy's Page.) But were the old days really that different? The political conventions used to be in August, which provided material for political junkies. In those days, the campaign began in February of the election year, and the formal campaign didn't get serious until after Labor Day, which worked out well because the pennant races ended Labor Day weekend, and you didn't have all those playoffs, and pro football was able to begin after the World Series, and professional basketball was on UHF, keeping the sports cycle out of the political cycle. But August was also when the new model cars started showing up in the showrooms.