The Incorporated States of NSC48 is a colossal, cultured nation, notable for its keen interest in outer space, ritual sacrifices, and anti-smoking policies. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical, humorless, devout population of 7.491 billion NSC48ians are ruled by a mostly-benevolent dictator, who grants the populace the freedom to live their own lives but watches carefully for anyone to slip up.

The enormous, corrupt, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Law & Order, Administration, and Industry. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 92.4%.

The frighteningly efficient NSC48ian economy, worth a remarkable 1,101 trillion cards a year, is led by the Retail industry, with major contributions from Book Publishing, Uranium Mining, and Woodchip Exports. Black market activity is rampant. Average income is an impressive 147,020 cards, but there is a large disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 559,906 per year while the poor average 26,738, a ratio of 20.9 to 1.

Student exchange programs are in trouble as everyone wants to leave but no-one wants to come, college-level writing classes are taught by undergraduate editors of the school newspaper, Retail facilities are being turned into legendary habitats, and literature classes frequently go on field trips to rock concerts. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. NSC48's national animal is the legendary, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation.

NSC48 is ranked 18,550^th in the world and 1,463^rd in Two for Largest Black Market, with 213 trillion Standard Monetary Units.