Alien design and simulation

First off, thank you so much for your site and books. As a lifelong Christian studying science at an American university, your answers have been extremely helpful in my continued quest to maintain a strong faith.

My two questions come about two theories in response to fine-tuning that I find ridiculous, but some of my non-religious friends find ground in:

First, what are your thoughts on the possibility of alien design as proposed by Alan Guth (who claims that humans could eventually generate new universes)? My main response is to ask, even if this is possible, what makes the alien universe fine-tuned and how did that universe come into existence? Am I correct in asking such a thing?

Also, if you have the time, I was wondering what your thoughts on simulation theory were? Again, I find it to be utter speculation that still doesn't solve the problem of an outright creator.

Response: Thank you. You have good points.  But interestingly they can be turned to “our” advantage:

1. If people accept the possibility of “alien design” (as I think Dawkins did in the recent debate with Rowan Williams) then they accept that the universe is fully compatible with a (non-ultimate) Creator. But this is equally compatible with an ultimate Creator.
2. Similarly if they accept that the universe could be a simulation then logically they have to accept that it could be a Creation as well.