Location: Europe

Overview • People • Government • Economy • Trend • Analysis

The Confederate Lands of Selwonia is a massive, environmentally stunning nation, ruled by Grand Magister with an even hand, and remarkable for its sprawling nuclear power plants. Its hard-nosed population of 4.284 billion have some civil rights, but not too many, enjoy the freedom to spend their money however they like, to a point, and take part in free and open elections, although not too often.

It is difficult to tell where the omnipresent, corrupt government stops and the rest of society begins, but it devotes most of its attentions to Defence, with areas such as Social Equality and Social Welfare receiving almost no funds by comparison. It meets every day to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Arten. The average income tax rate is 84%, and even higher for the wealthy. A powerhouse of a private sector is led by the Arms Manufacturing industry, followed by Information Technology and Uranium Mining.

People can often be seen driving to work in war-surplus tanks, motorists must pay to enter inner-cities during peak hours, new safety regulations require all cars manufactured in Selwonia to be bombproof, and Selwonia has one of the largest offshore wind farms in the world. Crime -- especially youth-related -- is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Selwonia's national animal is the selwonian singing dog, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, its national religion is patrimpianism, and its currency is the ozring.

Selwonia is ranked 351st in Europe and 88,986th in the world for Shortest Average Lifespan, scoring -21 on the Bus Surprisal Index.

Preview

NationStates by Max Barry, author of and