The District of Hsiao is a gargantuan, socially progressive nation, renowned for its irreverence towards religion, absence of drug laws, and spontaneously combusting cars. The hard-nosed, hard-working, democratic population of 11.565 billion Hsiaoans live in a state of perpetual fear, as a complete breakdown of social order has led to the rise of order through biker gangs.

The minute, liberal, pro-business, outspoken government, or what there is of one, juggles the competing demands of Education, Defense, and Welfare. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 4.7%.

The strong Hsiaoan economy, worth 646 trillion betales a year, is driven almost entirely by the private sector, which is broadly diversified and led by the Gambling industry, with major contributions from Arms Manufacturing, Door-to-door Insurance Sales, and Basket Weaving. Average income is 55,879 betales, but there is a vast disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 361,715 per year while the poor average 3,461, a ratio of 104 to 1.

Employers may fire workers without giving any reason, surveillance cameras are banned, the latest Harry Potter book is a bestseller, and urban graffiti is hand-calligraphed in perfectly kerned elegant fonts. Crime is a major problem, probably because of the absence of a police force. Hsiao's national animal is the deer, which can occasionally be seen sifting through garbage in the nation's cities.

Hsiao is ranked 287,074^th in the world and 5^th in Stornoway for Lowest Crime Rates, with 36.59 law-abiding acts per hour.