<blanket statement warning> Silicon Valley's emphasis on young programmers and engineers in general is silly.
Much of the startup culture is not about researching new involved technical solutions, or crafting something complex and intricate, but getting a simple social idea backed by stock tech out the door quickly & cheaply to effectively pull the slot machine lever.
It is stupid and self-defeating beyond the immediate short term. But you can see where they come from, and they knowingly take the risk of patching up later once they have some success.
Besides, michaelochurch probably has a few downvotes by reflex at this point.
The problem in the Valley is that the dominant culture is now set by the people who moved West to take advantage of nerds and their poor negotiating skills. There's a personality type and it's not a good one.
There are oilmen and coal miners and gold miners in the world, and Silicon Valley's leadership is comprised almost entirely of people miners who turn young male quixotry into gold. It's Hollywood for Ugly People.
I don't dislike all business people. As with any other group, there are good ones who think long term and bad ones who raid companies and fail up. Technology just seems to be dominated, about 10-to-1, by the bad ones.
Underestimating the power ratio between capital and labor, they're easily tricked into believing that hard work can overcome the massive social distance between them and the investor/founder caste. The best thing for them isn't a foolhardy attempt to "turn themselves into gold" in the short term; it's to leave and then to build something better in the long run.
If someone has a blend of sensitivity to history with a nice dose of inspiration and creativity, whatever his age, hire him.
Creativity not guided by experience tends towards the wheel.