The Republic of Sostenad is a huge, genial nation, notable for its daily referendums, punitive income tax rates, and suspicion of poets. The compassionate, democratic population of 460 million Sostenadians love a good election, and the government gives them plenty of them. Universities tend to be full of students debating the merits of various civil and political rights, while businesses are tightly regulated and the wealthy viewed with suspicion.

The enormous government juggles the competing demands of Welfare, Education, and Healthcare. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Listur. The average income tax rate is 64.9%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The sizeable but inefficient Sostenadian economy, worth 12.6 trillion dollars a year, is quite specialized and led by the Information Technology industry, with significant contributions from Book Publishing and Trout Farming. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 27,357 dollars, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Arbitration is mightier than the sword, children's bedrooms are often decorated with posters of successful accountants, feeling like a winner comes at a price, and retirement homes are often fitted with luxurious suites. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Sostenad's national animal is the Owl, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Sostenad is ranked 254,712^th in the world and 214^th in Karma for Largest Timber Woodchipping Industry, scoring -12.49 on the Tasmanian Pulp Environmental Export Index.