The Greater Mapletia Union of Mapletish is a titanic, cultured nation, ruled by President Wiston Walash with a fair hand, and remarkable for its rum-swilling pirates, otherworldly petting zoo, and absence of drug laws. The hard-nosed, hard-working, democratic, cheerful population of 23.394 billion Mapletians hold their civil and political rights very dear, although the wealthy and those in business tend to be viewed with suspicion.

The relatively small, corrupt government juggles the competing demands of Education, Industry, and Defense. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Struggait. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 56.5%.

The frighteningly efficient Maplish economy, worth a remarkable 5,416 trillion Mapletish Dollars a year, is led by the Tourism industry, with significant contributions from Information Technology, Book Publishing, and Retail. Black market activity is extensive. Average income is an amazing 231,515 Mapletish Dollars, with the richest citizens earning 5.8 times as much as the poorest.

History textbook pages are used as impromptu tissues by distraught students, military equipment is being auctioned off to extend comatose centenarians' lives, a soldier's body is a temple, and visiting the best Maplish restaurants requires keeping a visa on file. Crime is totally unknown. Mapletish's national animal is the Lion, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its national religion is Faith.

Mapletish is ranked 32,298^th in the world and 16^th in Rushmore for Nicest Citizens, with 18.96 average smiles per day.