The United States of Valgasia is a huge, efficient nation, remarkable for its keen interest in outer space, ubiquitous missile silos, and irreverence towards religion. The hard-nosed, hard-working population of 403 million Valgasians are highly moralistic and fiercely conservative, in the sense that they tend to believe most things should be outlawed. People who have good jobs and work quietly at them are lauded; others are viewed with suspicion.

The medium-sized government juggles the competing demands of Education, Industry, and Administration. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Valzglow. The average income tax rate is 45.0%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Valgasian economy, worth 40.5 trillion Valgasian Dollars a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Information Technology industry, with major contributions from Retail, Automobile Manufacturing, and Uranium Mining. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is an impressive 100,449 Valgasian Dollars, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Model railroad hobbyists have taken to muscling model shipbuilders off their "turf", disability advocates are not amused that they are told to be dependent on Valgasians's kindness, Eau de Trashcan has become a wildly popular perfume, and all marriages are arranged by the government. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Valgasia's national animal is the Valgasian Eagle, which teeters on the brink of extinction due to toxic air pollution.

Valgasia is ranked 244,673^rd in the world and 1,228^th in Europe for Most Cheerful Citizens, with 46.62 Percentage Of Water Glasses Perceived Half-Full.