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The Insanely Benevolent Hawk of Oblivious Ben

“Loyalty and Truth. No two words are as important.”

Overview • Dispatches • Policies • People • Government • Economy • Rank • Trend • Cards

The Insanely Benevolent Hawk of Oblivious Ben is a massive, environmentally stunning nation, ruled by Ben with an even hand, and notable for its aversion to nipples, keen interest in outer space, and compulsory gun ownership. The hard-nosed, devout population of 4.432 billion Oblivious Benians are prohibited from doing almost everything except voting, which they do timidly and conservatively.

The medium-sized, corrupt, moralistic government juggles the competing demands of Defense, Law & Order, and Education. It meets to discuss matters of state in the capital city of Ben zcity. Citizens pay a flat income tax of 57.0%.

The frighteningly efficient Oblivious Benian economy, worth 673 trillion Benmarks a year, is driven entirely by a combination of government and state-owned industry, with private enterprise illegal. However, for those in the know, there is a large, well-organized, broadly diversified black market in Arms Manufacturing, Information Technology, Tourism, and Furniture Restoration. The private sector mostly consists of enterprising ten-year-olds selling lemonade on the sidewalk, but the government is looking at stamping this out. Average income is an impressive 151,904 Benmarks, but there is a large disparity between incomes, with the richest 10% of citizens earning 580,709 per year while the poor average 27,458, a ratio of 21.1 to 1.

Colonists who were promised new lands find only war-torn devastation, the latest Harry Potter book is a bestseller, fair-weather fans talk during plays while die-hard theatre enthusiasts stay at home, and graffiti artists spend lengthy periods of time in jail. Crime, especially youth-related, is totally unknown, thanks to a capable police force and progressive social policies in education and welfare. Oblivious Ben's national animal is the Benjamin Thing, which frolics freely in the nation's many lush forests.

Oblivious Ben is ranked 196,529^th in the world and 252^nd in The Black Hawks for Largest Insurance Industry, scoring -3.13 on the Risk Expulsion Effectiveness Rating.

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