On September 11, 2001 an event changed this nation forever. It was noted, almost immediately that nothing in America - or even the world - would ever be quite the same again. The date, 9/11, is a number now burned into the annals of time, reflecting a national tragedy for eternity. It will forever conjure up memories of not only one of the most grim days in American history, but also a time before that, a time that was a little simpler, a time where terror didn't reign supreme.

Almost six years later, we can now add a second number to that list: 756. From this day forward nothing will be the same. An innocence of a nation has been lost. On August 8th, 2007, Barry Bonds became the All-Time Home Run leader. The past cannot be changed, but we as a nation must look forward and ask ourselves how - if ever - can we recover from such an event.

Now some people - naive people, possibly communists - will look at 756 and say that it's just a record, that it's just a game, that it means very little in the grand scheme of things. But these people simply cannot grasp the staggering change that has happened. A man who cheated has sullied baseball, the national pastime, America’s game! A man who allegedly used steroids, a man who isn’t very nice to the media, a man who is generally kind of a dick has tarnished a once great record. The once honest game of baseball has been torn apart, and the very, very few who have cheated (namely Bonds) have changed the outlook of the game forever. Hank Aaron's home run record was baseball's JFK, and last night San Francisco became the new Dallas.

We, as Americans, had so little to worry about until shortly after mid-night (on the East Coast) a baseball pierced the night sky and landed beyond the outfield wall in right-center. At that moment, cries rained down throughout the country. San Francisco was nearly destroyed. A nation was changed for the worse. Bonds raised his arms in triumph; America bowed its head in defeat.

How will we look back at 756? Where will this day be remembered in the history books? What will our reaction, as a nation, be? Will this be remembered as a time - like many before it - when America awoke to fight back against evil and the tyranny of the large-headed? Or will this be remembered as the first step in the downfall of our great country? Will the 756th straw be the one to break the camel's back?

As of today, we simply cannot afford to worry about the future and what it holds for us. We must not change our daily lives. We must collectively put our heads down and push forward, no matter how hard it is in the wake of 756. We all feel terrible, and I know my heart goes out to the people of San Francisco, who suffered through this tragedy, as well as Hank Aaron and his family. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

But this is not the end of a nightmare, it is merely the beginning. The America you knew and loved is no more. Baseball has changed and - as always - so has this great country. Maybe somewhere down the line we will be able to learn from the events of 756, but now is not the time to sit and ponder. We cannot let a tragedy, no matter how great, get to us. We must perceiver. We must continue our lives just as they were, for if we don't, then Barry Bonds wins. And we simply can't let that happen.