Location: HiberNationStates

Overview • People • Government • Economy • Trend • Analysis

The Great Unwashed Masses of Polkstreet is a gargantuan, safe nation, ruled by Polky with a fair hand, and renowned for its devotion to social welfare. Its hard-nosed, intelligent population of 15.688 billion are free to do what they want with their own bodies, and vote for whoever they like in elections; if they go into business, however, they are regulated to within an inch of their lives.

It is difficult to tell where the omnipresent, socially-minded government stops and the rest of society begins, but it juggles the competing demands of Defence, Education, and Law & Order. It meets every day to discuss matters of state in the capital city of The Women's Locker Room. The average income tax rate is 80%, and even higher for the wealthy. A powerhouse of a private sector is led by the Book Publishing, Uranium Mining, and Arms Manufacturing industries.

A survey of the nation's rivers and children has shown that pesticide levels are at an all-time regional high, public footpaths are being slowly eroded by the burgeoning number of ramblers, eminent domain has been abolished, and teams of painters are converting road signs from horse lengths to kilometers. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Polkstreet's national animal is the accordion, which is also the nation's favorite main course, and its currency is the whoopie.

Polkstreet is ranked 7th in HiberNationStates and 96,803rd in the world for Largest Trout Fishing Sector, scoring -5 on the Nemo Depletion Efficiency Index.

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NationStates by Max Barry, author of and