Perhaps the BEST B1G Forum anywhere, here at College Football Fan Site, CFB51!!!

do female teachers makes less?
superintendents?, principals?

How about generic lawyer X (I know, that doesn't exist) makes partner at a firm (so it took awhile to get in that spot).......he's taking a pay cut if he "advances" to being a judge, yes?

Yes, this is a common occurrence. 

I'm guessing there are limits

You could make the same argument about congresspeople. Should my congressperson make more than one from Mississippi? It costs a lot more to live here. My congressperson actually isn't independently wealthy. He lives a very moderate lifestyle. The person he replaced was independently wealthy, which is more of the norm.

As it is for a lot of federal judges, at least in this area.

On the one hand, I want to agree with you. Once upon a time I wanted to be a judge. Then I hit the point when it became economically irrational for me to try for that. I would have to become much more wealthy than I am currently on track for to want to switch now, given how long I hope to have left before I retire.

FWIW, I've made the argument before that I think Congresspeople are underpaid.  Per my quick google (could be wrong), they make $174k/yr which is just not much given the job that they do.  

I think the biggest issue for Congresspeople is not so much their home cost of living but their distance from DC.  A VERY few congresspeople live close enough to DC to actually commute from home so they only have to maintain ONE residence.  The rest need to maintain two residences and that is obviously pretty expensive on just $174k/yr.  

We have a similar issue here in Ohio.  The base salary for a Representative in Ohio is $71,099.  They do get extra for committee chairs but I don't think that is all that big of a deal.  

If you are a lawyer who lives and works in the Columbus area, this is a REALLY good deal.  Your firm will generally give you a lot of leeway because there is prestige value in having an Ohio Rep as a partner and you can commute to the Capitol and still work some at your firm.  

If you are say a farmer or plant manager from Ashtabula, this sucks.  You are a three hour commute from the Statehouse, you can't really do your job at home because you are away too much, and you basically need a second home in Columbus.  

I infer this is something about women earning less than men, which is widely disputed for obvious reasons.

Hence the 

Aside from just money, humans thrive on status.  It's a pretty big deal to be a Congressperson, like being a Federal judge.  It isn't the money, it's the status, having people cater to you, being "important", feeling like you're somebody.  You walk around and people notice, you have a staff getting you coffee, etc.

And there is a lot of etc.