Location: The Vast

Overview • People • Government • Economy • Trend • Analysis

The Alternate Provisional Gov't of Northrop Grumman is a massive, socially progressive nation, ruled by Leader with an iron fist, and remarkable for its keen interest in outer space. Its hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical population of 1.251 billion enjoy great individual freedoms in everything except elections, which, where they exist at all, are populist shams for a dictatorship government that has no intention of ever giving up power.

It is difficult to tell where the omnipresent, pro-business government stops and the rest of society begins, but it is effectively ruled by the Department of Defence, with areas such as the Environment and Religion & Spirituality receiving almost no funds by comparison. It meets every day to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Hawthorne. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 45%. A powerhouse of a private sector is led by the Arms Manufacturing industry, followed by Information Technology and Soda Sales.

Commuter vessels have trouble staying afloat due to increased passengers, Northrop Grumman is increasingly belligerent on the international stage, the tenet of free speech is held dear, and the latest Harry Potter book is a bestseller. Crime -- especially youth-related -- is a major problem. Northrop Grumman's national animal is the eagle, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation, and its currency is the dollar.

Northrop Grumman is ranked 7th in The Vast and 6,295th in the world for Shortest Average Lifespan, scoring 10 on the Bus Surprisal Index.

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NationStates by Max Barry, author of and