The Region of The Ringing Mountains is a titanic, cultured nation, ruled by The Mountain Raider with an even hand, and renowned for its public floggings, frequent executions, and state-planned economy. The hard-nosed population of 15.324 billion Ringing Mountainsians have some civil rights, but not too many, enjoy the freedom to spend their money however they like, to a point, and take part in free and open elections, although not too often.

The enormous government juggles the competing demands of Environment, Education, and Defense. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of The Ringing Mountains. The average income tax rate is 94.1%.

The thriving Ringing Mountainsian economy, worth a remarkable 1,698 trillion gold pieces a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. However, for those in the know, there is a large, well-organized, quite specialized black market in Arms Manufacturing, Information Technology, Tourism, and Retail. The private sector mostly consists of enterprising ten-year-olds selling lemonade on the sidewalk, but the government is looking at stamping this out. Average income is an impressive 110,809 gold pieces, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 4.5 times as much as the poorest.

The entire entry for The Ringing Mountains in the Hitchhiker's Guide to the World reads 'mostly harmless', in a fit of passion The Mountain Raider has shredded thirty years' worth of petitions, the government helps teach children how to kill a man from six paces, and space shuttles regularly launch rubbish into space. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. The Ringing Mountains's national animal is the braxat, which is also the nation's favorite main course, and its national religion is Preservers.

The Ringing Mountains is ranked 114,885^th in the world and 5^th in Athas for Largest Publishing Industry, scoring 2,874.71 on the Bella Potter Productivity e-Index.