The United Socialist States of Hackney is a titanic, safe nation, renowned for its state-planned economy, punitive income tax rates, and devotion to social welfare. The compassionate population of 18.839 billion Hackneyians enjoy extensive civil rights and enjoy a level of social equality free from the usual accompanying government corruption.

The enormous, socially-minded government juggles the competing demands of Welfare, Education, and Law & Order. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Hackney Central. The average income tax rate is 68.1%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The large but stagnant Hackneyian economy, worth 296 trillion Minoan tala a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. The industrial sector, which is fairly diversified, is led by the Soda Sales industry, with major contributions from Trout Farming, Information Technology, and Beef-Based Agriculture. Average income is 15,720 Minoan tala, and distributed extremely evenly, with practically no difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Kids are arrested at gunpoint for playing with toy rifles, home renovation projects take decades to complete, allergy-sufferers must wear gas masks before venturing outdoors, and the Minoan tala is said to only have value in antique shops. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Hackney's national animal is the little owl, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Hackney is ranked 183,732^nd in the world and 9^th in Minoa for Largest Black Market, with 662 billion Standard Monetary Units.