Matt Yglesias shares my view that suspending Ken Livingstone for make rude and stupid insults is weird. And, while I have no idea what Matt’s views on speech codes, hate speech and the like are, it is worth noting as a general point that once you accept that offensive speech can be a crime, it’s really not that weird that Livingstone was suspended. Or, it’s still weird, but no less weird than it would be if he’d been suspended for shoplifting or indecent exposure.