[AndrewC]

We also knew that each individual is a biological system with numerous interconnected functions and that genes alone were not a sufficient answer.

Aside from the issue of complexity of the cell, the concerns that Commoner has are not limited to him alone. E.G.

GE crops with Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) genes suspected to harm soil ecology

By contrast, the toxins in many Bt crops are already in the active form. Researchers from New York University, including the renowned soil ecologist Guenther Stotsky, found that unlike natural Bt, these active toxins do not disappear when added to soil, but become rapidly bound to soil particles, and are not broken down by soil microbes. This contradicts what Monsanto scientists have been soying about soil persistence of Bt toxin from their Bt crops.

Dr Charles Benbrook, former Executive Director of the Board on Agriculture for the US National Academy of Sciences has commented: "Compared to the volume of Bt in the soil in a conventional agroecosystem, the quantity of Bt entering the soil in corn stalks and stover must be enormous... Remarkably millions of acres of Bt GM varieties have been allowed to be grown in the US with little, if any, research being carried out as to the long term effect on soil fertility of such potentially toxic plant residue material (i.e when incorporated into soils post-harvest in preparation for the next crop). That this fundamental question has been overlooked is symptomatic of modern systems of agriculture generally, which frequently pay little regard to the fundamental role microbial activity plays in maintaining genuine soil fertility." For more about the ecology of soil microorganisms and soil fertility, see "Genetically Engineered Crops and Soil Fertility".

These concerned people (Physicians and Scientists for Responsible Application of Science and Technology) will most probably be labelled as idiots and alarmist luddite fools by the self-appointed elite.

[gore3000]

Good post. Let me add the following from the same article:
The use of GE crops with Bt toxin genes is widespread. These genes make the crops resistant to important pests. Due to these genes, the Bt toxin is produced in every part of the plant, so when the parts not harvested decompose, considerable amounts of the toxin may reach the soil.

The above shows what happens when we fool with genes. In nature, a plant would not have the toxin in every cell, it would have it just in certain cells, just as we have skin in certain parts of our bodies, bone in others and muscles in others. In nature, each cell only activates (although it has the entire genome of the individual) only the parts of the genome needed for that particular cell. However, because this plant has been genetically engineered, there is no control over what this new gene will do and therefore it is active in every cell.