The Republic of Buness is a titanic, efficient nation, ruled by Darret Brown with an even hand, and notable for its frequent executions, public floggings, and complete absence of social welfare. The hard-nosed, hard-working, democratic, devout population of 17.576 billion Bunessians are free to succeed or fail in life on their own merits; the successful tend to enjoy an opulent (but moralistic) lifestyle, while the failures can be seen crowding out most jails.

The medium-sized government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Administration, and Industry. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Bowen. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 42.9%.

The frighteningly efficient Bunessian economy, worth a remarkable 1,892 trillion Dollars a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Arms Manufacturing industry, with major contributions from Retail, Information Technology, and Tourism. Average income is an impressive 107,650 Dollars, with the richest citizens earning 6.9 times as much as the poorest.

Pristine wilderness has been trashed in the quest for cheaper oil, customer satisfaction with online delivery services is at an all time high, cutting-edge missile systems are being retrofitted to twin-prop air force biplanes, and the fire protection service is wholly government-funded. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Buness's national animal is the Stork and its national religion is Christianity.

Buness is ranked 150,116^th in the world and 1^st in The Empire for Largest Insurance Industry, scoring 999.99 on the Risk Expulsion Effectiveness Rating.