The Federal Republic of Belkan Pride is a colossal, cultured nation, remarkable for its frequent executions, compulsory military service, and irreverence towards religion. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical population of 5.927 billion Belkan Prideans 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 relatively small, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Industry, and Education. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Dinsmark. The average income tax rate is 20.5%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The powerhouse Belkan Pridean economy, worth 459 trillion dollars a year, is led by the Tourism industry, with significant contributions from Information Technology, Book Publishing, and Automobile Manufacturing. Average income is 77,533 dollars, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Dubiously qualified Skandilundian barristers keep referring to laws as 'government guidelines', sneezing pedestrians are grabbed by alley-lurking doctors, the police go to great efforts to seize contraband favored by politicians on the police oversight committee, and Leader has been known to threaten dissenting citizens with a machine gun at press conferences. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Belkan Pride's national animal is the hawk, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Belkan Pride is ranked 99,574^th in the world and 10^th in A Liberal Haven for Lowest Crime Rates, with 65.92 law-abiding acts per hour.