Doesn't sound good, Del
I can tell if my forks are binding by watching the forks when I slowly bounce up and down while sitting in the middle of the seat. Do they move or is all of the movement coming from the shock? Even if your forks are aligned perfectly, there is less stiction in the shock so they won't move as much as the rear suspension, but the forks should move smoothly and in sync w/ the shock. If they don't, try aligning them.
To add to what these guys are saying, if you forks are binding, you're not only experiencing a harsh ride, you are wearing out your fork bushings, inner and outer tubes.
I suggest doing like they say...loosening the pinch bolts on the front axle. They are on the non-brake side of the front wheel. I usually take the bike off of the stand, hold the front brake and bounce the forks up and down a couple of times, trying to get them to move as far into their stroke as possible. Put the bike back on the stand and tighten the pinch bolts.
If you really want to be sure about the alignment...loosen the axle pinch bolts, take off your handlebars, loosen the top triple clamp pinch bolts, unscrew the fork caps, put something under the back tire (or get someone to hold it up) until the forks are bottomed out and then tighten the axle pinch bolts and you'll have perfectly aligned forks (as long as your fork tubes are 100% straight).
I used to do that everytime, but the first method works good enough.