Government can't afford to hire the competent talent, only the scraps after everyone else (even the consulting bodyshops) are done. The top GS pay bracket is lower than entry level engineers at many companies (not just FAANG, but also defense, F500 companies, etc.)

One of the many things that I found tempting about working for the U.S. Digital Service was that, while the GS-15 pay grade is definitely way less than I'd make in the private sector, my spouse's family is military/government and the difference between "hippy programming thingy" and "has a GS-15/O-6 job" would've been night and day. The one puts me in a pile of stereotypes, but the other says "oh, he's basically the bureaucratic equivalent of a Captain, that's very respectable."

Different circles I guess. While my spouse's family considers government jobs to be stable and somewhat respectable, there is a lot more respect for FAANG and other high paying jobs. One is respectable, the other is prestigious.

Government work is not respectable.

Park conservation work is hella respectable

To clarify, I guess you mean "Captain in the navy", equivalent to a Colonel in other branches. A captain in the army is O-3.

That’s all perspective. Many people who realize you work the government will see you as a do nothing bureaucratic leech and for most government employees that is the correct assumption.