The Republic of Eastern Marlan is a very large, socially progressive nation, remarkable for its daily referendums, absence of drug laws, and stringent health and safety legislation. The compassionate, democratic population of 342 million Eastern Marlanians are free to do what they want with their own bodies, and vote for whomever they like in elections; if they go into business, however, they are regulated to within an inch of their lives.

The large, liberal, socially-minded, outspoken government juggles the competing demands of Administration, Education, and Welfare. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Talon. The average income tax rate is 67.0%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The sizeable but underdeveloped Eastern Marlanian economy, worth 12.6 trillion marts 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 led by the Tourism industry, with major contributions from Book Publishing, Information Technology, and Retail. Average income is 36,716 marts, and distributed extremely evenly, with practically no difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

News headlines suggest that Leader has a sideline in guinea pig pimping, counselors have to sign pledges supporting gay rights before they can speak to any patients, abortions are routinely performed in the nation's hospitals, and the marts is said to only have value in antique shops. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Eastern Marlan's national animal is the White-tailed Tropicbird, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

Eastern Marlan is ranked 22,540^th in the world and 331^st in the West Pacific for Nicest Citizens, with 22.05 average smiles per day.