``On university search committees, given candidates with approximately equal attainments, I favor (self-made individuals) over those with prep school and Ivy League credentials on the grounds that while they are now on the same lap of the race with the graduate of North Dakota State, the Ivy Leaguer had been given -- through family, money, and the good-old-boy networks -- a huge head start."
That's novelist Tony Hillerman, confessing a prejudice while recalling his days in academic life in his charming memoir, ``Seldom Disappointed."
Which takes us to the topic of the day: Let's talk about discrimination. Now there's a conversation stopper around the office. One of the Rigidly Enforced Lies is that it doesn't exist in corporate America. But by sending the subject underground, we lose the chance to understand it.
OK, so no one wants to hear a white guy talk about race or gender discrimination, and I understand that. But I do have something to say about age discrimination, and I want to talk about discrimination generally to get there.
Hiring is discrimination. The word ``discrimination" comes from the Latin ``discernere," with ``cernere" meaning ``to separate." The worst jobs in the world are the they'll-hire-anybody ones. When it comes to hiring (not to mention dating, voting, and so on), we all discriminate and are all discriminated against.
Take education. If you don't have a college degree, you won't be considered for plenty of jobs. On the other hand, I've known executives who won't hire any MBAs, period. Then there's religion, along with age, race, and all the others.
If we could see into everyone's hearts, minds, and guts and know their exact prejudices, then we could really do some true ``profiling" -- we could do a prejudice profile for every job candidate, scoring them from zero to 100.
What would it take to be a zero, with no one discriminating against you? I don't think it's possible. You're going to be too young or too good-looking or too educated or too something for somebody.
So then, what would it take to score 100, with everyone discriminating against you? What if you happen to be, say, a 400-pound cross-dresser who insists on coming to work in drag? Nope, there's someone who would sympathize and want to give you a break. Well, what if you're a 400-pound cross-dresser who is illiterate? Maybe. What about a history of having bludgeoned to death every manager that he worked for?
My point here is to put age discrimination in perspective. Maybe there are, I don't know, 50 percent of employers who won't hire a 60-year-old. That would be massive discrimination, and yet there are those who think the percentage to be even higher. You can rail against it, and rightly so, but don't get distracted from finding the 20 percent who think that being 60 is an advantage and who are prejudiced in favor of experience and wisdom.
Just be careful not to confuse age discrimination with a natural discernment against some characteristics that might be associated with age -- being a know-it-all, having an income level ahead of the market, or being worn-out or out-of-date. Nobody wants to hire someone old -- that is, someone used up . It isn't age discrimination, it's a righteous assessment of energy per dollar of salary.
But who's old? Katie Couric? She turns 50 in January, but I hear she's doing OK, careerwise. Is John McCain old? He's 69 and a cancer survivor, but I'd love to work with him. And my favorite TV show (``CBS Sunday Morning") is hosted by a 73-year-old, Charles Osgood.
The problem isn't being 50 or 60 or 70; it's being old. So I have a few suggestions on how to not be old, and I welcome any others you'd care to suggest:
No one is old when planting flowers.
No one is old when singing.
No one is old when riding a bike.
No one is old when buying a new suit.
And, my favorite:
No one is old when telling a joke.
To age gracefully is to turn down a lot of chances to be old.
Dale Dauten is a syndicated columnist. He can be reached at dale@dauten.com. 
