The Constitutional Monarchy of Stantheman is a very large, efficient nation, remarkable for its enslaved workforce, keen interest in outer space, and complete lack of prisons. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical population of 268 million Stanthemanians 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 medium-sized, corrupt, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Defense, and Education. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Manthestan. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 29.5%.

The frighteningly efficient Stanthemanian economy, worth 31.3 trillion S-bills a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Arms Manufacturing industry, with major contributions from Information Technology, Retail, and Uranium Mining. Black market activity is notable. Average income is an impressive 116,769 S-bills, but there is a large disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 582,975 per year while the poor average 13,168, a ratio of 44.3 to 1.

Interest rates mysteriously drop whenever the CBS Governor goes house hunting, one-stop superstores divide and conquer family businesses, death row is annually emptied to feed the nation's hunger for televised murder-games, and a rolling news ticker tape of disclaimers runs across the bottom of the screen on all TV shows. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Stantheman's national animal is the Short-eared Owl, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to toxic air pollution.

Stantheman is ranked 294,735^th in the world and 11^th in The Grand Council of the Beard for Nicest Citizens, with 1.3 average smiles per day.