The Republic of Zecron is a mammoth, orderly nation, renowned for its barren, inhospitable landscape, state-planned economy, and restrictive gun laws. The hard-nosed, cynical population of 5.037 billion    are ruled without fear or favor by a psychotic dictator, who outlaws just about everything and refers to the populace as "my little playthings."

The large, moralistic, socially-minded, well-organized government juggles the competing demands of Law & Order, Education, and Defense. The average income tax rate is 44.0%, but much higher for the wealthy.

The large but underdeveloped    economy, worth 148 trillion    s 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 slick, highly efficient black market in Uranium Mining, Woodchip Exports, Book Publishing, and Basket Weaving. 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 29,519    s, and distributed extremely evenly, with little difference between the richest and poorest citizens.

Chipped paint can see a building condemned, citizens are forced to donate blood once every three months, UFO sightings are listed daily in the morning news, and polygraphs are relegated to the dungeon exhibit in castle museums. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to a well-funded police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Zecron's national animal is the   , which teeters on the brink of extinction due to widespread deforestation.

Zecron is ranked 246,550^th in the world and 13^th in Zero for Nicest Citizens, with 6.19 average smiles per day.