Dr. Lemons told of a young Lovecraft, who, “Hated this church, but… loved this building.”

Clarifying, Lemons explained that Lovecraft had decided to quit the church by age five and had become an atheist by age eight. That’s right, Rhode Island, this weekend we are celebrating the accomplishments of one of Rhode Island’s leading atheists.

Of course, Lovecraft’s atheism is somewhat nihilistic and existential, a far cry from some of the more optimistic and Humanistic atheism I might champion. Still the government Roger Williams established here 350 years ago helped guarantee freedom of and freedom from religion for all shades of belief and non-belief.

You can view Lemons full talk below, followed S.T. Joshi’s keynote address in which he talks about the long and tortured history of Lovecraft’s literary reputation. In the middle of Joshi’s speech is the surprise appearance of Lovecraft’s ghost, banging out “Yes, We Have no Bananas” on the church organ.

This is going to be a fun weekend.

The WPRI General Assembly debates have been fantastic, and Sunday’s between Sen. Michael McCaffrey and challenger Laura Pisaturo was no exception. The two candidates offer a stark choice for Warwick, especially on marriage equality. McCaffrey is against gay marriage and Pisaturo is in a committed gay relationship and is a vehement supporter of marriage equality.

Also, look at these two statements by the candidates to see how they are froaming their campaigns differently.

McCaffrey – “I have children … I want them to grow up in the city of Warwick the way I grew up in the city of Warwick, enjoying the city of Warwick.”

Pisaturo: “If there ever was a time for change in Rhode Island especially in District 29 it’s now.”

They do agree on some issues, though … both said they support raising income tax rates on those who earn more than $250,000 a year.

Another interesting Democratic primary race to watch: Rep. Karen MacBeth vs. Gus Uht. MacBeth is best known for her opposition to abortion and Uht’s campaign is being managed by a lobbyist for the RI NOW.

Are things really that bad in Rhode Island? Well, let’s look at two stories on the front page of the Providence Journal this morning for a little insight. In one article, the Projo reports that “a record number of families slept in homeless shelters and emergency apartments in May and June.” Meanwhile, in another front page article, the Projo says the affluent community of Barrington is looking to hire a leisure director, “responsible for breathing new cultural life into this bedroom community.” The reality is things are really bad for some Rhode Islanders, but many others are doing just fine.

Recycling is “on the rise” in Rhode Island!

Totally cool that Waterfire payed homage to Pussy Riot on Saturday by playing the Russian punk band’s new song “Putin Lights Up The Fires.”

Today in 1866, the National Labor Union asks Congress to implement an eight-hour work day.

And today in 1890, horror author H.P. Lovecraft was born in Providence, RI. He once said, “The world is indeed comic, but the joke is on mankind.”

Most ridiculous thing said this weekend: Rep. Todd Akin of Missouri said female victims of “legitimate rape” don’t become pregnant because woman can shut down the biological process of becoming pregnant.

Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman on Paul Ryan’s economic plan for America: “Ryanomics is and always has been a con game, although to be fair, it has become even more of a con since Mr. Ryan joined the ticket.”