OT, but it's interesting to hear this about America. Just yesterday I was in a conversation about how that (i.e. Tall Poppy Syndrome, what you're describing) is Australia's defining characteristic, and things are much better in America. But maybe not.

[delayed]

The tall poppy thing exists well in the pocket of the US midwest I grew up in (Rust Belt) - I understand it to be a cultural inheritance from the Irish/English/Scottish working class which remain cohesive communities. When you scope out to the broader American culture it dissipates, though I wouldn't be surprised to find it in other kinds of communities.