a couple of Bill T snips followed by > my comments...
I see the exact reverse- setting up NT apiaries in my area that flood the
area with mites when their hives crash with stunning regularity every year.
Fortunately economics are catching up with them and only one remains and
they may call it quits since it is a bit expensive to replace all your
hives every year since they all die.

>you are speculating about the origin of the mites and imho anyone who does not have (and can afford to loose) thousands of hives to work with and is likely fooling themselves.

But what you are saying is the NT bees will not survive unless surrounded
with NT bees. So they cannot really manage Varroa?

>Nope, never said that. I think you are grasping at straws.  Randy gave a good number of perhaps 2% that display of resistance/tolerance to mites. Toss this 2% out into some population (98%) of non resistant/highly treated bees and what does the math and common sense tell you will happen?

BTW, my definition of NT is that the colony is still alive after three
years of no mite control measures. Mite control measures include miticides
organic or not and manipulation which includes splits and drone larva/pupa
removal.

>There is no universal definition of NT and that seems to be about half of what this tread is about. I have hives that live that long with no chemical treatment beyond sugar. You make it sound Bill as if the only beekeepers that would pass your definition would also qualify as bee-havers. Folks were splitting hives and often raking drone comb long before varroa arrived here. Beekeepers traditionally did these things for PURPOSE quite different from any reason associated with varroa. 

Gene in Central Texas where the weather is just miserable.... 

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