The Federal Republic of Aestheria is a huge, efficient nation, notable for its frequent executions, ubiquitous missile silos, and national health service. The hard-nosed, democratic population of 979 million Aestherians 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 medium-sized, corrupt government juggles the competing demands of Industry, Administration, and Defense. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Ambridge. The average income tax rate is 37.8%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Aestherian economy, worth 135 trillion Thanes a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Information Technology industry, with significant contributions from Retail, Book Publishing, and Arms Manufacturing. Black market activity is frequent. State-owned companies are common. Average income is an impressive 138,090 Thanes, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.4 times as much as the poorest.

Calisthenics is a well-known tax-dodging technique, all major public areas are watched by police surveillance cameras, Members of Parliament are often found living in cardboard boxes, and the art of conversation has been rediscovered. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown. Aestheria's national animal is the Pomerianian.

Aestheria is ranked 61,906^th in the world and 2^nd in The United Haven for Most Advanced Public Education, scoring 3,957.22 on the Edu-tellignce® Test Score.