Guess what? Nobel laureate Paul Krugman discovered that if you strip out food, energy, housing, and used cars from the consumer price index and then calculate the six-month change at an annualized rate, this inflation rate falls just a hair short of the Federal Reserve’s maximum 2% target rate. The battle is over, guys! Just as long as you strip away all of the essentials that comprise the bulk of the working class’s budget from an incredibly doctored inflation rate.