The Borderlands of The Scarlands is a massive, efficient nation, ruled by Super President Gargle Zagargledorp with an iron fist, and remarkable for its keen interest in outer space, pith helmet sales, and cultivated feral children. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical, humorless, devout population of 1.84 billion Scarlanders are kept under strict control by the oppressive government, which measures its success by the nation's GDP and refers to individual citizens as "human resources."

The tiny, corrupt, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Industry, and Administration. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of The Crater. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 4.8%.

The frighteningly efficient Scarlandsian economy, worth 303 trillion scalps a year, is fairly diversified and led by the Arms Manufacturing industry, with major contributions from Gambling, Uranium Mining, and Retail. Black market activity is extensive. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is an impressive 164,816 scalps, but there is a vast disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 1,122,834 per year while the poor average 8,801, a ratio of 127 to 1.

Woodcutter axes are cited as the most common cause of death amongst rotting carcasses, the nation's police officers are famously miserable-looking, equality looks curiously unequal, and meetings are often scheduled for "about four-ish" following complete conversion to sundials. Crime, especially youth-related, is all-pervasive, with the police force struggling against a lack of funding and a high mortality rate. The Scarlands's national animal is the rotting carcass, which is also the nation's favorite main course, and its national religion is Zhargics.

The Scarlands is ranked 2,980^th in the world and 90^th in The North Pacific for Highest Disposable Incomes, with 156,905.41 Standard Monetary Units.