Gary,
I've been thinking about this lately. We're going to be in SF in late May, and I'm planning on taking my 8-year old son to a game; it could be one in which Bonds passes Ruth (I saw Aaron's 705th HR). My son likes Bonds, but also knows that he's cheated somehow.
Part of my thinking is that baseball lore is part records and part reputation. Frank Robinson, for example, was nearly the equal to Mays, statistically, but won't be remembered as an equal.
I think Bonds had the chance to be remembered as the best baseball player of all time, or at least the best offensive player of all time (giving the nod to Ruth for his pitching). You can't take away what Bonds did before '98. Even if he breaks Aaron's record, I think he at best will be rated "one of the top ten" players, just as few talk about Aaron as the greatest home run hitter.

Well, in 10 years, A-Rod will have 780 homers, so maybe it won't matter.