>As far as PE, is not this theory an admission of gaps?  I wouldn't
>mind discussing the PE theory with you but I must warn you, the sudden
>appearance of creatures sounds a lot like creation events to me.

If this is the case, then let's see what the fossil record has to say
about your creator.

Almost 4 billion years ago, God decided to create the first living things:
bacteria and other unicellular organisms
God rests for about 3 billion years.
About 600 million years ago, God decides to create a bunch of new
organisms: bizarre-looking invertebrates
God rests for a few million years, although he suspends his rest to 
create new organisms every now and then, e.g. trilobites.
About 500 million years ago, God decides to create jawless fish.
About 80 million years later, God decides to create jawed fish and the
first land plants.
Around 400 million years ago, God decides to create insects.  A little
bit later he decides to create seed plants and ferns.
About 350 million years ago, God decides to create a bunch of amphibians.
God rests for several million years, pausing every now and then to
create some new "kinds" of animals and plants.
God decides to create the first reptilian animals about 300 million years
ago.
God decides he doesn't like a lot of his creations.  He decides
to wipe out a whole bunch of them 245 million years ago.  He kills
off more than 19 out of every 20 existing species.
God starts creating again.  A little more than 200 million years ago,
God makes dinosaurs and a few small mammals.
A few million years later God creates the first birdlike creatures,
e.g. Archaeopteryx.
God decides to make flowering plants 140 million years ago.
God gets angry with his creation again and decides to wipe out a good
portion of it 65 million years ago.  His wrath seems to be strongly
directed at the dinosaurs since he wipes them all out.  But his
wrath isn't quite as strong as the first wipe-out that happened
245 million years ago.  This time he only wipes out about 15 of every 
20 species.
God starts creating all sorts of new mammals.
Around 40 million years ago, God decides to create grass.
A couple million years ago, God decides to create upright-walking,
ape-like creatures called hominids.

Note that I left a lot out.  God was constantly creating new creatures
and destroying old ones throughout history.  I've simply described
God's more obvious creation trends.

Now Mike, is this the creation model you want to support?

(Reference: Philip Whitfield, _From So Simple a Beginning: The Book of
Evolution_, MacMillan, New York, 1993)
--
Brett J. Vickers bvickers@ics.uci.edu 
http://www.ics.uci.edu/~bvickers/home.html
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