NationStates Jolt Archive

The Beltway: A Factbook

Geography
Relative Location:
Maryland, Delaware, Virginia

Agricultural Resources:
(in order of importance and amount grown/raised/caught annually)
Cattle, chickens, fish, crabs, tobacco, pigs, corn, wheat, sorghum, apples

Minerals:
(in order of importance and size of deposits)
Coal, marble, limestone, aggregate, copper, clay, slate, iron, sandstone, gold

Climate:
Varies, with a humid subtropical climate in the east and a more mountainous climate to the west.

Highest Point:
Mt. Rogers, at 5,729 feet

Economy:
GDP:
$1,805,916,559,237.07
$10,438.82 (per capita)

Industries:
Pizza Delivery, Cattle Farming, Gambling, Agriculture, Genetics, Information Technology, Arms Manufacturing, Gas Refining, Manufacturing, Movies (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showpost.php?p=10782894&postcount=4)

Major Corporations:
Pizza Hut, Domino's Pizza, Papa John's Pizza, Perdue Chicken, Montgomery County Autonomous Systems, Celera Genomics, DuPont Chemical, Lockheed, Martin, General Dynamics, Baltimore Shipyards, Newport News Navy Yards

Stock Exchanges:
(ordered from largest to smallest)
TBEX (The Beltway EXchange), Baltimore
AEX (American EXchange), Georgetown
MSX (Maryland Stock eXchange), Annapolis
VSX (Virginia Stock eXchange), Richmond

Unemployment Rate:
10.00%

Employed Population below Poverty Line:
5.02%

Income Tax Rate:
69% (Average)
75% (Highest)

Budget:
$1,757,684,926,305.00

Currency:
Beltway Dollar (BD)
$2.7916 BD = $1.00 USD

Major Products:
Aggregate (101% of requirement)
Airplanes (102% of requirement)
Alcoholic Bevereges (58% of requirement)
Apples (18% of requirement)
Automobiles (1% of requirement)
Autonomous Vehicles (115% of requirement)
Cattle (210% of requirement)
Cell Phones (12% of requirement)
Chickens (140% of requirement)
Clay (90% of requirement)
Coal (172% of requirement)
Computers (121% of requirement)
Copper (94% of requirement)
Corn (101% of requirement)
Crabs (124% of requirement)
Crude Oil (12% of requirement)
Fiber Optics (135% of requirement)
Fish (125% of requirement)
Gold (21% of requirement)
Granite (65% of requirement)
Gravel (56% of requirement)
Horses (1% of requirement)
Iron (45% of requirement)
Limestone(112% of requirement)
Marble (148% of requirement)
Natural Gas (54% of requirement)
Pigs (103% of requirement)
Potatoes (48% of requirement)
Refined Gas (160% of requirement; needs natural gas)
Refined Oil (120% of requirement; needs crude oil)
Sandstone (43% of requirement)
Slate (60% of requirement)
Sorghum (90% of requirement)
Televisions (3% of requirement)
Timber (54% of requirement)
Tobacco (120% of requirement)
Wheat (95% of requirement)

History
The Beltway grew out of the economic collapse of the United States. It has only recently, and grudgingly, adopted a parliamentary government; further, citizens of The Beltway tend to regard their country as the United States of America, despite its small size and power. It has fought two successful wars with its neighbours, gaining the territory of Western Maryland in the process. More recently, it has peacefully regained all of Virginia. It has fought a war with Gilabad, and is currently negotiating a peace with that nation.

Military
Branches:
The Beltway Security Force (BSF) is divided into four branches:
The Army, including much of the air corps;
The Navy, including the Marines;
The Coast Guard, including small naval vessels;
and the National Police, which gets the lion's share of the budget.

Expenditures:
The Beltway Security Force's budget has settled down somewhat, and, due to recent budget cuts, has been forced to be less profligate in its spending.

Army - 4% of the Budget (3.1% of the GDP)
Navy - 4% of the Budget (3.1% of the GDP)
Coast Guard - 6% of the Budget (4.7% of the GDP)
National Police - 6% of the Budget (4.7% of the GDP)

Major Units:
Army - Nine active Divisions (one Airborne, one Armored Cavalry, five Mechanized Infantry, two Armored); Twenty ready-reserve Divisions (five Armored, fifteen Mechanized Infantry)

Navy - Three Battle Groups, One Marine Division

Government and Political Structure
Country Name:
(Official) The Provisionary Federal Parliamentary Republic of The Beltway
(Long) The Republic of The Beltway
(Short) The Beltway
(Former) The United States of America

Government Type:
The Beltway is a Federal Parliamentary Republic. It has two houses, a Parliament and a Senate. The Parliament is based on representation, while the Senate consists of two members from each county plus an additional member for each state, with DC counting as a state and a county. The Prime Minister is elected separately from Parliament and Senate, and acts as a sort of executive. The other ministers, however, are selected by the Senate, with the PM choosing from among three options for each post. The Prime Minister retains a veto, which is overridden by a four-sevenths majority in the Parliament and Senate.

There is also a Supreme Court, with justices Clarence Thomas, John Roberts, Samuel Alito, David Souter, Harry Edwards, Douglas Ginsburg, David Tatel, Judith Rogers, and Blane Michael.

Political Parties:
Democratic Party (Currently in majority)
Republican Party (Primary opposition party)
Libertarian Party, Green Party, Progressive Party ("Third" or minor parties)

Beltway Politics:
The people of The Beltway tend towards moderate, center to left-of-center candidates. The current Prime Minister is Timothy Kaine, who replaced moderate Republican PM Robert Ehrlich. The Foreign Minister, often considered the number two position, is Mark Warner, who succeeded Michael Steele. Other prominent ministers include Benjamin Cardin, Defence Minister, who succeeded Constance Morella; and Michael E. Busch, Minister of Commerce, who succeeded John Warner.

Administrative Divisions:
Counties (123, including the District of Columbia)

Cities:
Georgetown (Capital), Baltimore (Largest City), Dover, Richmond, Rockville, Manassas, Frederick, Norfolk, Wilmington, Hagerstown, Lewes

UN Classification:
Inoffensive Centrist Democracy

Embassies and Consulates:
Embassy of the United Kingdom of Azaria, 2225 R Street, Georgetown
Consulate of the United Kingdom of Azazia, Intersection of North Orange and West Ninth Streets, Wilmington
Consulate of the United Kingdom of Azazia, Intersection of Redwood and Light Streets, Baltimore
Consulate of the Allied States of West Corinthia, 3506 International Drive, Georgetown

Embassy of the Federation of Amazonian Beasts, 3051 Massachusetts Avenue, Georgetown

Embassy of the Republic of AdmiralBell, 2200 Massachusetts Avenue, Georgetown

Embassy of the Totalitarian Dictatorship of Roman Republic, 3501 International Place, Georgetown

Embassy of the Republic of Cascadian America, 2343 Massachusetts Avenue, Georgetown

Consulate of the Free Land of Moantha, 4727 Concord Pike, Wilmington

Embassy of the Incorporated States of Sarzonia, 3100 Massachusetts Avenue, Georgetown

Embassy of The Benevolent Dictatorship of Iuthia, 501 Pennsylvania Avenue, Georgetown

Embassy of the Confederacy of Nordic Union, 2833 M street, Georgetown

Embassy of the Federated Republics of Spiral Sun, 3519 International Court, Georgetown

Embassy of the Constitutional Monarchy of Imperial Pan-Russia, 2341 Wyoming Ave, Georgetown

Embassy of the Incorporated States of Monos Polein, 2100 S Street, Georgetown

Embassy of the Republic of Tannu Uriankhai, 1520 New Hampshire Avenue, Georgetown

Embassy of the Republic of The Orthanc, 1401 16th Street, Georgetown

Embassy of the United Kingdom of Isslemere-Nieland, 3000 Whitehaven Street, Georgetown

Embassy of the Republic of New Smithsonia, 2490 Tracy Place, Georgetown

Embassy of the Dictatorship of Fasco-Spirilia, 3007 Tilden Street, Georgetown

Embassy of the Theocracy of Upper East America, 1801 P Street, Georgetown

Embassy of the Commonwealth of Grand Plutocracy, 3350 M Street, Georgetown

Embassy of the Holy Republic of Resurrected Danu, 1600 New Hampshire Avenue, Georgetown

Embassy of the Holy Empire of Naktan, 3510 International Drive, Georgetown

Embassy of the Empire of Xeraph, 2109 E Street, Georgetown

Embassy of Pacitalia, 2650 Wisconsin Avenue, Georgetown

Embassy of Gejigrad, 601 New Hampshire Avenue, Georgetown

People and Population
Total Population:
319,000,000

Population Growth Rate:
2.23% per year

Languages and Literacy:
Literacy rate of 99.3%
There is no official language; some of the most widely spoken (first) languages are English, Spanish, Vietnamese, Mandarin, Korean, and Cantonese.

Major Universities:
In order of perceived quality, the top five universities are:
Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore
Georgetown University, Georgetown
University of Maryland, College Park (and elsewhere; UMCP is most highly regarded of the U-MD system)
Virginia Tech, Blacksburg

Domain Extension (Top-Level Domain):
.bway

(I will be updating this factbook occasionally)

OOC: Any more experienced nations interested in critiquing this Factbook?

Bump.

Very Nice! A lot like mine when I did one...

Bumping this thread

--Press Release from the office of Kweisi Mfume, Tourism Minister of The Beltway--
The Beltway: A Factbook was released yesterday, and has received a rave review: Very nice! Get yours while it lasts!
--End of Press Release

bump
bump
to the top

OOC: Bump. Oh, and while I'm at it, anything, specifically, that people think should be added?

The only thing I can think of (which is also something I'm working on) is a listing of Ministers/Secretaries for contacting.

OOC - See "Beltway Politics" section under "Government and Political Structure" section.

ooc: perhaps a bit on the domestic infrastructure such as the amount of roads, rails, and shipping canals that cross the Beltway. Details on the telecommunication network and maybe some info on the type and/or number of select commodities consumed, e.g. barrels of oils imported per day and the barrels of oil consumed per day versus the volume of gas the Beltway exports each day. Just small things that add a little depth.

OOC: Very nice. As someone who lives and works in that part of the country, it's fascinating to see all the people listed (except Ehrlich whom I hate with a passion, but meh).

OOC - I live here, too, and you'll note that Ehrlich is out of power in The Beltway. He lost his seat, and his party got beat.

New info included, so here's a bump.

OOC: Mind if you put me as having an embassy in Georgetown?

Fulll name is Allied Union of Velkya.

Contact the Foreign Minister here (http://forums.jolt.co.uk/showthread.php?t=464604), please.

OOC - I live here, too, and you'll note that Ehrlich is out of power in The Beltway. He lost his seat, and his party got beat.
Whose Ehrlich?

Whose Ehrlich?OOC: Robert R. "Bob" Ehrlich is Maryland's Governor. He's a Republican (the same political party as George W. Bush).

Ah. Thanks for telling me that Sarzonia. You planning on adding TB to your Factbook (namely, the History of Sarzonia) should he stay around long enough and agree to it?

Ah. Thanks for telling me that Sarzonia. You planning on adding TB to your Factbook (namely, the History of Sarzonia) should he stay around long enough and agree to it?
OOC: Absolutely.

TB, how come you chose the Panda as your national animal?

--Excerpted from "Frequently Asked Questions about The Beltway," an official publication of the Tourism Ministry--
Does The Beltway have a national animal?
Officially, The Beltway lacks a national animal, seeing as how The Beltway is merely a provisional state and cannot truly have national animals, national anthems, etc. However, the Panda, like the cherry blossom, is something of a symbol of Washington, DC, where the Provisional Republic began, so many have adopted it as an unofficial national animal. Of course, many also identify the Bald Eagle as the national animal; it's still the more common symbol for the nation.
--End of Excerpt--

Why not pandas? Further, I hadn't quite developed the storyline perfectly when I originally created my nation, and I didn't feel like changing it - although I did change my motto to E Pluribus Unum. Besides, it could be useful for political cartoons - panda possibly representing The Beltway in terms of foreign affairs, while eagle for The Beltway in domestic affairs.

Great work. :)

Thanks; about how often should I be updating? I've been attempting to do so once a week...

[Out Of Context] What do you do if someone hasn't posted to a war rp in a week? [/Out of Context]

OOC: IRL do you live inside the beltway?

If so, where?

If not, why do you like the area inside the beltway so much?

OOC - I don't live inside I-495; however, I live close enough (MoCo) that it's as if I do. The Beltway's an interesting place, and it's great to live near a city with free museums.

OOC: Are you one of those people who say your from DC despite living outside of it?

OOC - No, I'm proud to be a Marylander. However, when people ask where my hometown is, I say I live in the DC area. MoCo isn't significant enough apart from being near DC.

Thanks; about how often should I be updating? I've been attempting to do so once a week...

[Out Of Context] What do you do if someone hasn't posted to a war rp in a week? [/Out of Context]

When you get major changes in information, you should update.

If the person hasn't RPed for a while, politely send them a TG, but usually it's because they're tied up with RL issues.

Pacitalia - thanks for the reply. About how long should one wait for a response?

how long should one wait for a response?
That is variable. You can expect it to take a LONG WHILE, my good man. My conflict with Joint Conglomerates is on hold as he's in university....