The Ascendancy of Porta Caeli is a massive, environmentally stunning nation, ruled by Jan I e Caeli with an iron fist, and notable for its public floggings, smutty television, and vat-grown people. The hard-nosed, cynical, devout population of 3.349 billion Caelestians 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 large, corrupt, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Education, and Law & Order. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Ultimaportus. The average income tax rate is 82.6%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Caelestic economy, worth 445 trillion Credites a year, is led by the Information Technology industry, with major contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Tourism, and Basket Weaving. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is an impressive 132,940 Credites, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.0 times as much as the poorest.

Talking during class is a gateway to lifelong drug addiction, homeowners on prime real estate have been seen dodging giant bulldozers with cartoon characters painted on them, nursing mothers are often arrested for indecent exposure, and nuclear physics is the most popular course at university. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Porta Caeli's national animal is the Eagle, which is also the nation's favorite main course, and its national religion is Ascendism.

Porta Caeli is ranked 275,308^th in the world and 3,464^th in the West Pacific for Largest Automobile Manufacturing Sector, scoring -10 on the Henry Ford Productivity Index.