ringo writes:
Kleinman writes:
Don't you find this surprising that drug-resistant bacteria would appear in bacterial populations that were never exposed to the antibiotics and there was resistance to many different antibiotics?
I only claim to have the first inkling of a clue about evolution but I don't find that surprising. Drug-resistant bacteria evolve, whether there are drugs in the neighbourhood or not. Hint: mutations. When drugs do mosey by, the drug-resistant bacteria survive. No mystery.
That is my understanding as well. I think some of the confusion arises from Creationists assuming that environmental pressures cause evolution to occur. That is not correct. Environmental pressures allow previous mutations that are advantageous to manifest. The mutations and their effect occurs regardless. If the mutation then results in a selective advantage for the organism, it survives and thrives.