The Republic of Simonel is a mammoth, safe nation, notable for its state-planned economy, frequent executions, and fear of technology. The hard-nosed, democratic, devout population of 7.251 billion Simonelians love a good election, and the government gives them plenty of them. Universities tend to be full of students debating the merits of various civil and political rights, while businesses are tightly regulated and the wealthy viewed with suspicion.

The large, socially-minded government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Law & Order, and Defense. The average income tax rate is 41.8%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The large but underdeveloped Simonelian economy, worth 164 trillion dollars a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. However, for those in the know, there is a slick, highly efficient, quite specialized black market in Trout Farming, Arms Manufacturing, and Uranium Mining. The private sector mostly consists of enterprising ten-year-olds selling lemonade on the sidewalk, but the government is looking at stamping this out. Average income is 22,630 dollars, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Criminals rejoice in the streets as the entire police force is sent away on a training retreat, families burn Leader's latest official photograph to keep warm, punk-rockers and girl-bands are united in their loss of fashion statements, and the industries of Simonel are coughing all the way to the bank. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to a very well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Simonel's national animal is the turtle, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to heavy metals seepage into national waterways.

Simonel is ranked 84,439^th in the world and 1^st in Magenta for Largest Black Market, with 3.74 trillion Standard Monetary Units.