The Grand Duchy of Ratling is a very large, socially progressive nation, notable for its lack of airports, state-planned economy, and irreverence towards religion. The compassionate, democratic population of 184 million Ratlings love a good election, and the government gives them plenty of them. Universities tend to be full of students debating the merits of various civil and political rights, while businesses are tightly regulated and the wealthy viewed with suspicion.

The enormous, socially-minded government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Education, and Welfare. The average income tax rate is 75.0%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The sizeable but inefficient Ratlingian economy, worth 8.61 trillion legumes a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. The industrial sector, which is quite specialized, is mostly made up of the Trout Farming industry, with significant contributions from Basket Weaving, Woodchip Exports, and Information Technology. Average income is 46,788 legumes, and distributed extremely evenly, with practically no difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Elections are won by the candidate who makes the best 'yo mama' jokes, pretending to be prejudiced is a good way to get out of jury duty, psychiatrists bizarrely accompany Leader to meetings with foreign heads of state, and snooze factory is now prison lingo for rehabilitation center. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Ratling's national animal is the vulpes vulpes, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Ratling is ranked 285,700^th in the world and 1,263^rd in The Communist Bloc for Largest Automobile Manufacturing Sector, scoring -14.42 on the Henry Ford Productivity Index.