The Floating Fortresses of The 21 Hot Air Balloonists is a gargantuan, socially progressive nation, notable for its barren, inhospitable landscape, multi-spousal wedding ceremonies, and irreverence towards religion. The hard-nosed, democratic population of 19.297 billion Hot Air Balloonists 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, Law & Order, and Healthcare. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of The 21 Hot Air Balloonists City. The average income tax rate is 39.5%.

The Hot Air Balloonist economy, worth a remarkable 1,249 trillion Sandbags a year, is broadly diversified and led by the Book Publishing industry, with major contributions from Retail, Information Technology, and Woodchip Exports. State-owned companies are reasonably common. Average income is 64,748 Sandbags, with the richest citizens earning 5.0 times as much as the poorest.

Max Barry is this year's Miss The 21 Hot Air Balloonists, 'The Anti-Government Hour' is a popular programme on many of The 21 Hot Air Balloonists's radio stations, schools have extensive counseling programs for troubled students, and The 21 Hot Air Balloonists's leader goes out to lunch surrounded by large men in dark glasses. Crime is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. The 21 Hot Air Balloonists's national animal is the Gas, which can occasionally be seen sifting through garbage in the nation's cities.

The 21 Hot Air Balloonists is ranked 139,505^th in the world and 4^th in Travelling Region for Highest Food Quality, scoring 16.71 on the Meeshlin-Starr Index.