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March madness turns into March insanity

By Kathryn Zdan, EA

Editorial Director

A group of 24 men in Georgia broke the record for the longest basketball game during a charity game to raise money to fight sex trafficking.1 The new Guiness World Record for a continuous basketball game is 121 hours and 3 minutes, which broke the previous record of 121 hours, set by the same group of men in 2024.2

The players, ages 17 through 64, were required to stay inside the gym the entire time, even during breaks, and were required to eat and sleep on the court.3 The game was played with no quarter breaks or timeouts, and groups of six played two-hour shifts during the day with a five-hour sleeping shift at night.

The final score was 13,096 to 12,972. As compared to the highest scoring game in real March Madness history: in 1990, LMU beat Michigan 149-115.

Honestly, who steals a toilet?

By Mike Giangrande, J.D., LL.M.

Federal Tax Editor

Well, the answer is an Englishman who had such a “splendid” experience using it the day before that he was compelled to return later with friends and steal it. Of course, it helps that the toilet was made of solid 18-carat gold and was insured for more than $6 million.

The latrine in question was a fully functional one-of-a-kind work of art located at Blenheim Palace – the country mansion where Winston Churchill was born.

The authorities never found the toilet, and it is presumed to have been cut up or melted and sold. I, for one, hoped they melted it down if for no other reason than to sanitize the gold before selling it.

The toilet has an interesting American history because it had previously been on display at The Guggenheim in New York and was reportedly offered to President Trump during his first term in office.

States that tax groceries

Kansas and Oklahoma both recently eliminated their statewide taxes on groceries (although local taxes may still apply, and sales tax may apply to certain foods), leaving a handful of states that still apply a state-level tax to groceries.1

The 10 states that still impose a tax on groceries are:

  • Alabama: 3%
  • Arkansas: 0.125%
  • Hawaii: 4% (average) excise tax*
  • Idaho: 6%*
  • Illinois: 1%
  • Mississippi: 7%
  • Missouri: 1.225%
  • South Dakota: 4.2%
  • Tennessee: 4%
  • Utah: 3%

* State offers a grocery tax credit

A few fun facts about this week’s writers:

Mike Giangrande, J.D., LL.M.

Mike Giangrande, J.D., LL.M., is an Orange County native, and you can find him around his backyard smoker, working in his garage, or sipping lemonade at either a baseball or soccer game for this three children.

Kathryn Zdan, EA

Kathryn Zdan, EA, spends her non-Spidell hours on photography and watching horror films (and then sleeping with the light on). She also enjoys hiking, biking, and watching foreign films.

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