The Retired Delegate of Alsted is a gargantuan, environmentally stunning nation, ruled by a federal presidency with an even hand, and remarkable for its museums and concert halls, public floggings, and hatred of cheese. The hard-nosed, hard-working population of 40.467 billion Alstedians 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 government — a sprawling, bureaucracy-choked morass — juggles the competing demands of Healthcare, Education, and Environment. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of San Junipero. The average income tax rate is 83.5%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The thriving Alstedian economy, worth a remarkable 2,676 trillion Alstedian Dollars a year, is extremely specialized and solely comprised of the Book Publishing industry. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is 66,148 Alstedian Dollars, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

New safety regulations require all cars manufactured in Alsted to be bombproof, employers may fire workers without giving any reason, planespotters are emigrating in droves, and corporate lobbying has been outlawed. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Alsted's national animal is the Juniperon Otter, which frolics freely in the nation's sparkling oceans.

Alsted is ranked 53,202^nd in the world and 451^st in Europe for Most Developed, scoring 76.54 on the Human Development Index.