The Incorporated States of Siphon is a very large, socially progressive nation, notable for its keen interest in outer space, compulsory military service, and frequent executions. The hard-nosed, hard-working, democratic population of 489 million Sipholiates enjoy a sensible mix of personal and economic freedoms, while the political process is open and the people's right to vote held sacrosanct.

The medium-sized government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Law & Order, and Administration. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Capital District 0. The average income tax rate is 34.8%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Siphonian economy, worth 52.9 trillion wagecreds a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Information Technology industry, with significant contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Retail, and Book Publishing. Average income is an impressive 108,221 wagecreds, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.7 times as much as the poorest.

Bus ads propagandize causes ranging from sexual revolution to religious pogroms, open-casket funerals are avoided at all cost, multiple births are a cause of celebration for tax collectors, and soldiers are equipped with multi-million wagecred battlesuits. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Siphon's national animal is the bulls-eyed cockatoo, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation.

Siphon is ranked 274,941^st in the world and 192^nd in Horizon for Largest Populations, with 489 million capita.