Selecting from jpeg or other image

This might be a silly question. I just started using Illustrator (I've been using Photoshop for years) and was wondering if there is an easy way to select sections of an image that you get off of the internet for example. Like, for example, if I have an image of a cartoon flower on a white background. In Photoshop you can just use the magic wand tool and it's selected in a click. Is there a way to do this in Illustrator?

No. Illustrator cannot do that. What you can do is Live Trace the image which will turn it into vector and work from there.

Awesome. I just read about Live Trace and it seems to be exactly what I need. Thank you!

Live Trace IS GREAT