Planet 51

Over at Space.com is a report of an exoplanet (a planet orbiting another star) which is at an optimal orbit around it's star--one which is favorable to life. Astrophysicist Steven Vogt has this to say about the discovery.

"Personally, given the ubiquity and propensity of life to flourish wherever it can, I would say, my own personal feeling is that the chances of life on this planet are 100 percent," said Steven Vogt, a professor of astronomy and astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, during a press briefing today. "I have almost no doubt about it."

How does "life flourish wherever it can"? If "life happens" why can't it happen anywhere?