PZ Myers waxes enthusiastic on Mycoplasma mycoides while Christina Agapakis opines from the viewpoint of a synthetic biologist not involved in the Venter Institute project and Science just throws the door open to the good, bad and outright ugly commentary sure to follow.
SFnal reading: Ribofunk by Paul DiFilippo (well, sorta: RFunk is largely about a world where genetic engineering in general has gone surreally out of control, but it's not difficult to imagine synthetic genetics ["syngenics"?] playing a large part in that.).