That's a good point. I have difficulty reconciling two opposing feelings: I feel like the US is not producing enough developers/engineers, and I feel like the salaries do not reflect the shortage.

I have been working as a developer (and also an analyst) in the DC area for 6 years. The talent pool around here is very shallow. The companies for which I have worked are constantly looking to hire programmers. It is very difficult to find qualified applicants. Roughly half of developers at my current company are on H1-B visas. I think H1-B is both a form of indentured servitude and somewhat necessary (at least in the DC area). I wish there were a better way to employ immigrants, so that they could more easily job-hop or go out on their own.

OTOH, I think the salaries have not reflected this shortage. Maybe I am just a poor negotiator.

Perhaps Boston, Austin and other hot beds are different (i.e. deeper talent pools, more opportunistic employers). But I see my employers struggle to find developers, and poor salaries blamed on the economy.