In experiments with conditioned reflex, Ivan Pavlov taught a hungry dog to salivate at the sound of a bell. That was about 100 years ago. In contemporary usage, the same conditioning apparently prevails among
veterans of the Vietnam War. They salivate at the mention of Jane Fonda.

     It doesn't even have to be Fonda herself. Last week, I included the name of her ex-husband, Tom Hayden, in a column and there was instant salivation by association....

     One e-mailer was especially outraged because, he said, Fonda was being honored as woman of the century. The only reference I could find was that in April 1999, Barbara Walters included her in an ABC special that featured "100 years of great women.".....

     * Al Martinez's column appears Sundays and Wednesdays. He can be reached online at al.martinez@latimes.com.