I wouldn't say it is misplaced. I mean, it is excellent that Canada has that kind of earnings mobility. I would love to see the US make improvements there. But US companies still dominate the global economy. The tech industry was basically born from that 'misplaced' attitude and it still continues to be driven by US entrepreneurs.
The world is saturated in products that were born in the US. Coca-Cola, McDonalds, Apple...they were created by self-made men. Why is that? Why doesn't Canada have more of those stories?
Products of self made men seem pretty bad when you list those three....
As for Canada, being right next to the US does hurt the talent pool a bit as people leave for higher pay - not sure why Canadian firms pay lower, well other than them being greedy as sin (see our entire telecom industry). When you say 'those stories' what do you mean ? Corporations that have some titanic impact or just corporations that started from one or two guys and do well ?