Location: Europe

Overview • People • Government • Economy • Trend • Analysis

The Provincial Republic of Valcluse is a massive, socially progressive nation, ruled by President Madeline Pellet with a fair hand, and remarkable for its devotion to social welfare. Its hard-nosed, hard-working, intelligent population of 3.074 billion enjoy a sensible mix of personal and economic freedoms, while the political process is open and the people's right to vote held sacrosanct.

It is difficult to tell where the omnipresent government stops and the rest of society begins, but it juggles the competing demands of Commerce, Education, and Healthcare. It meets every day to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Valence. The average income tax rate is 71%. A powerhouse of a private sector is led by the Tourism, Automobile Manufacturing, and Book Publishing industries.

'The Anti-Government Hour' is a popular programme on many of Valcluse's radio stations, space research funding has hit a recent high while several military bases are being closed down, the tenet of free speech is held dear, and Valcluse's children are widely acknowledged as the most foul-mouthed in the region. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Valcluse's national animal is the Escargot, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation, its national religion is Roman Catholicism, and its currency is the Franc.

Valcluse is ranked 359th in Europe and 89,836th in the world for Shortest Average Lifespan, scoring -21 on the Bus Surprisal Index.

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NationStates by Max Barry, author of and