The Bismarckian Empire of Houndonia is a colossal, cultured nation, ruled by Bill with an even hand, and renowned for its ubiquitous missile silos, anti-smoking policies, and stringent health and safety legislation. The compassionate, hard-working population of 9.872 billion Houndonians 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 medium-sized government juggles the competing demands of Education, Healthcare, and Welfare. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Skarloey. The average income tax rate is 31.5%.

The thriving Houndonian economy, worth 956 trillion StarRuts a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Information Technology industry, with significant contributions from Tourism, Book Publishing, and Trout Farming. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is 96,929 StarRuts, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 4.8 times as much as the poorest.

The Grinder at Fat Sal's Deli and Recycling Center is a national institution, tower block residents are each held responsible for four square inches of front lawn, strict term limits have been applied to all elected offices, and Bill is the self-declared God of all Houndonia. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown. Houndonia's national animal is the Vendu Turtule, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its national religion is Gambling.

Houndonia is ranked 94,948^th in the world and 3^rd in The Scrapyard for Most Subsidized Industry, scoring 1,584.46 on the Gilded Widget Scale.