The European Union of Austrovik-Germania is a gargantuan, efficient nation, ruled by Victor Deschamps with an iron fist, and notable for its keen interest in outer space, irreverence towards religion, and punitive income tax rates. The hard-nosed, cynical population of 13.167 billion Europeans are ruled without fear or favor by a psychotic dictator, who outlaws just about everything and refers to the populace as "my little playthings."

The medium-sized, corrupt, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Healthcare, Education, and Defense. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Europa. The average income tax rate is 70.1%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient European economy, worth a remarkable 1,503 trillion Euros 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 dominated by the Information Technology industry, with significant contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Tourism, and Book Publishing. Average income is an impressive 114,173 Euros, and distributed extremely evenly, with practically no difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

It is illegal to distribute Girl Guide Cookies without an advanced food hygiene diploma, the military patrols the streets in search of possible secessionists, the examiners who examine examiners are being examined by examiners, and pre-takeoff checks last longer than the flights themselves. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Austrovik-Germania's national animal is the Rampart Lion, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Austrovik-Germania is ranked 38,775^th in the world and 8^th in New World Union for Most Subsidized Industry, scoring 4,785.05 on the Gilded Widget Scale.