The People's Republic of The Northern Valley is a huge, cultured nation, renowned for its state-planned economy, punitive income tax rates, and devotion to social welfare. The compassionate, democratic, devout population of 565 million Swesish 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 government — a sprawling, bureaucracy-choked, socially-minded, outspoken morass — juggles the competing demands of Education, Welfare, and Spirituality. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Swesing. The average income tax rate is 77.5%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The sizeable but sluggish Swesish economy, worth 10.8 trillion goods 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 Beef-Based Agriculture industry, with significant contributions from Furniture Restoration, Pizza Delivery, and Arms Manufacturing. Average income is 19,166 goods, and distributed extremely evenly, with practically no difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Dictionary sales have hit an all-time high, international terrorists often get their weapons supply in The Northern Valley, Bee sanctuaries have been taken over by hydraulic fracturing sites, and the nation is currently revamping its entire education system. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a very well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. The Northern Valley's national animal is the bee, which soars majestically through the nation's famously clear skies.

The Northern Valley is ranked 281,917^th in the world and 6,718^th in the Rejected Realms for Largest Automobile Manufacturing Sector, scoring -11.66 on the Henry Ford Productivity Index.