On the heels of Sen. John McCain's big speech about global warming, the Republican presidential nominee has launched his own organic clothing line.

Or, sort of.

Team McCain (also known as "the campaign" or the folks that schedule, advise, defend and, don't forget, raise money for the candidate) is selling T-shirts ($25) and polo shirts ($50) made from "biodegradable fabric." Also on the shelf: baseball caps or visors ($15) and canvas bags ($20) made from organic cotton. The money goes toward the effort to install McCain in the Oval Office, but the effort means much more than that, both in the world of spin, and to the political dialog. ...

My office phone rang and a chirpy 20-something calling from the 514 area code was on the line. A short time into the call, I knew what it was: an oil industry-sponsored opinion survey that smelled like a push poll.

With $4-per-gallon gasoline prices drawing near, what better time, in the industry's view, to make a renewed push to open up America’s coastal waters to drilling rigs. A poll designed to show that the voters support more drilling is a predictable part of the lobbying and PR strategy that is gathering steam.

The questioner tossed a lot of industry arguments my way – e.g. much of the oil that we use originates in North America, oil company profits are not out of line with other industries, scads of untapped oil lie beneath the coastal waters.

She asked me to rate the arguments' importance if they were verifiably true. For each one, I said, "not at all important." ...