Meet ‘forbearance,’ the obscure governing tool that just might resolve the net neutrality debate

The network neutrality debate might soon be wrapping up, as the Federal Communications Commission prepares to issue a new round of rules. And as the FCC does so, it's exceptionally likely that we'll hear one word again and again: forbearance.

It is worth taking a moment to understand exactly what that deceptively dull concept means and where it came from. For that, we turn to Harold Feld, a senior vice president at the advocacy group Public Knowledge (which supports strong net neutrality regulation). "Forbearance" means much the same in normal English as it does in telecommunications law -- to restrain oneself from doing something. In short, it might be key to resolving the net neutrality fight. And yet it is one of modern governing's most poorly-understood tools.