A friend suggested I get in touch with Consumer Reports about this "crusade" I've set out on. I didn't need to. The November 2006 issue has an article on Eyeglasses that talks about many of the same issues we're dealing with here.

You can access much of it online, but you'll need to subscribe, to see the full ratings.

Also a great (apart from the pricing) look at the differences in lens materials can be found here.