Post dot-com though, options (now mostly RSUs) are hardly funny money any longer. So bets that my company will go up a whole lot more than Google to the degree that it covers $100K/year comp difference are still bets.

It's fairly clear to me (who doesn't (and haven't applied to) work at a West Coast tech giant) that if you can get a job at such, you will make more money. That's just the way things are. Of course, there are reasons to work elsewhere, but making the most money is probably not one of them.