John McCain wasn’t being smart when he used the term “tar-baby” when speaking to some folks in Iowa the other day.  I’m not offended by this because I think McCain was being incredibly stupid, but that’s about it.  This certainly wasn’t an attempt on his part to be racist, nor do I think this is an indicator of whether he is or not.  Bad choice of words, but that’s it.
Now, if I’m going to take umbrage with anyone on this, it’s the gentleman that wrote the blog that I liked to.

Senator John S. McCain offered an apology in Cedar Falls today after he used the word “tar-baby” in response to a rather arcane question from an Iowa voter about federal intervention in divorce and custody cases. The phrase is considered by some to be a racial epithet.

Get it straight, sir.  People consider “tar-baby” to be a racial epithet because it is one, just like “coon” is a racial epithet.  But if someone’s talking about a coon-skin cap, there’s no need to call Jesse.  That said, you wouldn’t say that some people “consider coon to be a racial epithet.”  It is a racial epithet, just like “tar-baby” is.  It just wasn’t one in this context.
Also, if you’re looking for a template to use when you mess up and say something silly, check the way McCain manned up on this one.

When told after the event that the word was viewed by some as a racial epithet, Mr. McCain responded: “I hope that it’s not viewed that way.” A moment later, he apologized. “I don’t think I should have used that word and I was wrong to do it.”

That’s how to do it.