The United Socialist States of Ig-Bat is a large, safe nation, remarkable for its ban on automobiles, keen interest in outer space, and irreverence towards religion. The compassionate, democratic population of 144 million Batics enjoy extensive civil rights and enjoy a level of social equality free from the usual accompanying government corruption.

The government — a sprawling, bureaucracy-choked, liberal, socially-minded morass — juggles the competing demands of Education, Welfare, and Healthcare. The average income tax rate is 79.7%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The sizeable but sluggish Batican economy, worth 3.58 trillion Waqes a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. The industrial sector, which is highly specialized, is mostly made up of the Tourism industry, with significant contributions from Information Technology and Soda Sales. Average income is 24,865 Waqes, and distributed extremely evenly, with practically no difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Landless farmers wander forlornly in the government's many national parks, former gun owners are finding that brandishing paintball guns isn't as satisfying as the real thing, birth rates have hit an all-time low, and the state considers itself the 'third parent' of every child in the nation. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a very well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Ig-Bat's national animal is the Zangar, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Ig-Bat is ranked 290,006^th in the world and 1,038^th in Concord for Largest Insurance Industry, scoring -8.25 on the Risk Expulsion Effectiveness Rating.