Hi Attila,
I am not sure I agree with the above, in a bonsai sense. America as a whole is very far behind Europe and Japan (Asia) in Bonsai. We have many generations to go to get even close to these other countries. We have to look at Europe and Japan to see what they are doing inorder to better our future of bonsai. Japan is leading the world in bonsai, look at many of the books and magazines, they are still producing very killer bonsai, bonsai that is not cookie cutter. They hold the techniques and secrets that not many know about in America.
Europe is not far off of Asia, the material coming out of the Alps, Italy and other parts are phenominal. We would be complete idiots to not be interested in what they are doing, either that or one is just not serious about bonsai. Europe has and amazing collection of worldclass artist's and trees, more so than America by far. Hopefully one day we are able to mentioned in the same breath as them.
In America we have a wealth of land to collect, but really only certain parts of the country have the right type of ground to compete with the twisty gnarly pines and junipers you see in Japan and Europe. We as American bonsai folks need to get these old collected trees to a showable state to get credability in the bonsai world.
Hundereds of thousands of trees were collected throughout the Rockies in the 50's thru the 80's.....many of which died. I have heard plenty of stories about certain people collecting killer pines and junipers just to get pictures of them in the books and magazines, then they died! There are a few left but never became what they could have been. It is very sad really, we could have been a leading force in the bonsai world.
America is gaining strength in the bonsai world, but it will be sometime before we are considered "Important" by the rest of the world. I hope it happens sooner than later. The rest of the material wealth I will agree with you that America and CHINA have a stranglehold on everything else,
Jason