The Halifax Town Republic of The Shaymen is a mammoth, safe nation, ruled by Freddy Fox with an even hand, and remarkable for its museums and concert halls, free-roaming dinosaurs, and restrictive gun laws. The hard-nosed, cheerful population of 9.483 billion Shaymenians 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.

The relatively small government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Industry, and Education. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of The Shay. The average income tax rate is 7.8%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Shaymenian economy, worth a remarkable 2,307 trillion Dollars a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. The industrial sector, which is fairly diversified, is led by the Tourism industry, with major contributions from Information Technology, Retail, and Book Publishing. Average income is an amazing 243,294 Dollars, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.5 times as much as the poorest.

Politicians spend more time in courtrooms than in Parliament, actively encouraging climate change is helping reduce winter fuel costs, the new iVote app allows representatives to vote on legislation by launching ill-tempered birds and matching candies, and politicians accepting drinks in bars are executed for taking bribes. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown. The Shaymen's national animal is the Fox, which is also the nation's favorite main course.

The Shaymen is ranked 164,997^th in the world and 9^th in Happyfax for Largest Gambling Industry, scoring 241.33 on the Kelly Criterion Productivity Index.