> I think you misunderstand the evolutionary process. I suspect that if the virus was released, because it is already so contagious, it could infect most of us

> I think you misunderstand the evolutionary process. I suspect that if the virus was released, because it is already so contagious, it could infect most of us within 10s of human-to-human transmission generations (especially if any of the early spreaders had a large number of contacts, or was well connected). On the contrary, I think you are misunderstanding the evolutionary process. Why do you think it was possible to evolve this new transmissibility in only 10 or so passages in ferrets? Influenza mutates and adapts with breathtaking rapidity (another thing which makes it very interesting to study, and hard to combat). Also, selection can happen within a single individual. As soon as an infection gets inside of a cell, variety begins arising. The immune system then begins its battle, and it becomes a numbers game. The varieties which reproduce more rapidly will also be targeted first. If a different variety inside the same host can fly under the radar by reproducing at a more measured pace, it will gradually win out within that host.