The Republic of Santa Carla is a huge, efficient nation, notable for its teetotalling pirates, infamous sell-swords, and frequent executions. The hard-nosed, cynical, humorless population of 775 million Santa Carlans 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 enormous, corrupt, moralistic, socially-minded, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Law & Order, Defense, and Administration. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Amorres. The average income tax rate is 85.8%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The very strong Santa Carlan economy, worth 70.9 trillion Laris a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. However, for those in the know, there is a large, well-organized, quite specialized black market in Arms Manufacturing, Trout Farming, Furniture Restoration, and Beef-Based Agriculture. The private sector mostly consists of enterprising ten-year-olds selling lemonade on the sidewalk, but the government is looking at stamping this out. Average income is 91,483 Laris, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.4 times as much as the poorest.

A baby's first breath is also a baby's first felony, the phrase 'spreading like wildfire' is no longer in the public lexicon, the consent form for routine blood pressure measurement has been nominated for the 'Novel Of The Year' award, and gaping tourists take long-distance photos of diseased natives on "indigenous peoples" safari tours. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to the all-pervasive police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Santa Carla's national animal is the Red-Breasted Eagle, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Santa Carla is ranked 5,922^nd in the world and 9^th in The League for Highest Foreign Aid Spending, scoring 2,490.47 on the Clooney Contribution Index.