The Dictatorship of Poets Lament is a gargantuan, environmentally stunning nation, notable for its compulsory vegetarianism, ban on automobiles, and keen interest in outer space. The compassionate, democratic population of 11.764 billion Poets Lamentians are fiercely patriotic and enjoy great social equality; they tend to view other, more capitalist countries as somewhat immoral and corrupt.

The enormous government juggles the competing demands of Welfare, Education, and Public Transport. The average income tax rate is 61.3%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The large but inefficient Poets Lamentian economy, worth 356 trillion fears a year, is quite specialized and led by the Trout Farming industry, with significant contributions from Information Technology, Retail, and Soda Sales. State-owned companies are common. Average income is 30,323 fears, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.4 times as much as the poorest.

Literature classes frequently go on field trips to rock concerts, high school boys are required to pass vigorous self-mastery and sensitivity training to graduate, six-year-old children playing dress-up are viewed with suspicion, and doctors spend more time writing sick notes than caring for the sick. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Poets Lament's national animal is the raven, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Poets Lament is ranked 36,056^th in the world and 51^st in Spiritus for Largest Populations, with 11.8 billion capita.