The Imperial Provinces of Bearstin is a gargantuan, efficient nation, ruled by Emperor Darius II with an iron fist, and renowned for its ubiquitous missile silos, smutty television, and infamous sell-swords. The hard-nosed, hard-working, cynical, humorless population of 18.111 billion Bearstinians are ruled by a mostly-benevolent dictator, who grants the populace the freedom to live their own lives but watches carefully for anyone to slip up.

The medium-sized, corrupt, well-organized government prioritizes Defense, although Industry, Education, and Environment are also considered important, while Spirituality and Social Policy are ignored. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Bearstin. The average income tax rate is 70.1%, and even higher for the wealthy.

The frighteningly efficient Bearstinian economy, worth a remarkable 3,705 trillion Imperial Credits a year, is quite specialized and mostly comprised of black market activity, especially in Arms Manufacturing, Tourism, Information Technology, and Book Publishing. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is an amazing 204,612 Imperial Credits, and evenly distributed, with the richest citizens earning only 2.1 times as much as the poorest.

Pallbearers at military funerals dive for cover when they hear the three-volley salute, people are often woken up by rubbish music, hospitals fear government fines more than terrorist ransoms, and the government spends billions to protect Bearstin from a disaster that is one in a million. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Bearstin's national animal is the Grizzly Bear, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests, and its national religion is Honor Code.

Bearstin is ranked 21,291^st in the world and 7^th in Federation of Allies for Most Scientifically Advanced, scoring 270.62 on the Kurzweil Singularity Index.