Nation/Zastarda
The Axixican Trust Territory of Zastarda is a colossal, socially progressive nation, ruled by Prince Ucan Nibbleonthis with an iron fist, and remarkable for its prohibition of alcohol, keen interest in outer space, and avant-garde cinema. The hard-nosed, cynical, humorless, devout population of 6.646 billion Zastardans are ruled with an iron fist by the dictatorship government, which ensures that no-one outside the party gets too rich. In their personal lives, however, citizens are relatively unoppressed; it remains to be seen whether this is because the government genuinely cares about its people, or if it hasn't gotten around to stamping out civil rights yet.
The enormous, corrupt, well-organized government prioritizes Law & Order, with Defense, Healthcare, and Industry also on the agenda, while International Aid isn't funded at all. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Port Blessed. The average income tax rate is 78.6%, and even higher for the wealthy.
The all-consuming Zastardan economy, worth 507 trillion Zastardan Pesos a year, is highly specialized and mostly made up of the Beef-Based Agriculture industry, with significant contributions from Woodchip Exports and Uranium Mining. Black market activity is extensive. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is 76,420 Zastardan Pesos, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.0 times as much as the poorest.
The nationalised Arms Manufacturing Industry is not interested in making weapons, space research funding has hit a recent high while several military bases are being closed down, libraries have replaced overdue book fines with mandatory mental health assessments, and most people suffer from some form of hearing loss. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Zastarda's national animal is the Rattlesnake, which is also the nation's favorite main course, and its national religion is Golden Calf Worshippers.
Zastarda is ranked 132,044th in the world and 4,490th in Lazarus for Largest Manufacturing Sector, scoring 1,029.86 on the Gooback-Jerbs Productivity Index.
