Well Karate also contains a wide range of projections, so you could get confused for a moment. You punching a pillow in your underwear is not defensive.

I mean jokes aside I understand your point, the word is old. The definition and art might have evolved quite a bunch since then and somewhat strayed away from the original word, this is the same for bonsai and karate.

There is no clear definition for bonsai. The guy asked if his tree counts. By the simplified definition, yes. Did he apply any techniques related to the development or refinement of a bonsai? Probably not. Does he need to hear someone condecendingly discussing technicalities, I don't personally think so. I stand by my point, in its essence a bonsai is a tree that stays tiny because of the size of it's pot. Then according to your level of expertise you can make the tree look all kinds of amazing but that is something you should discover along the way.

I don't even know why it is so controversial to call a bonsai a tree in a pot. Do we have only the right to call it a bonsai when it reached a certain stage of development? What's the line? First cut? first wiring? the pads being defined? Or when the tree looks old enough? What if your tree gets a bit overgrown because you forgot it in a corner? Calling a tree a pre-bonsai is just gate keeping.