The Community of Valestein is a gargantuan, environmentally stunning nation, notable for its public floggings, frequent executions, and parental licensing program. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical, devout population of 18.009 billion Valesteiners 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 large government juggles the competing demands of Law & Order, Defense, and Spirituality. The average income tax rate is 41.4%.

The very strong Valesteinish economy, worth 723 trillion gold pieceses a year, is quite specialized and dominated by the Arms Manufacturing industry, with significant contributions from Automobile Manufacturing, Information Technology, and Trout Farming. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 40,159 gold pieceses, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 4.3 times as much as the poorest.

Evenings at university debating societies often end with everyone acknowledging both sides may well be right, the military is on a massive recruiting drive in advance of an invasion of Brasilistan, looting and pillaging are now considered vital intelligence-gathering activities, and the people consider response to rudeness to be an acceptable casus belli. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Valestein's national animal is the blue wolf, which is also the nation's favorite main course.

Valestein is ranked 246,919^th in the world and 43^rd in Lennart for Highest Average Incomes, with 40,159.18 Standard Monetary Units.