That's a common and probably valid in general way to look at westerners. However another reputable source said something to this extent: people in Asia have the right culture, the right mindset, but they have it too easy and their progress is so slow; westerners, on the other hand, are so immersed into materialism, their mind is so busy with shiny things, that they have no time for things that matter and their society is unsuitable for anything spiritual, but it is for this reason any achievement on the west counts as many on the east.

My opinion about this meditation thing is that there's something in it, but telling people not to try because it may accidentally destroy their mind is laughable. By the time one develops will so strong and concentration so stable that it may cause issues, one must already be knowledable enough.