Creamland
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Creamland, officially the Kingdom of Creamland (ISO country code: .ce) is a tiny landlocked nation of approximately 15,000 people in Western Europe. It is an independent nation created by a controversial land transfer from two Swiss cantons, Berne and Valais. Creamland is multilingual, with its "primary" language being English, but also acknowledging French and German as "official" languages. Creamland, like Switzerland itself, offically considers itself a neutral power, though it does have representation in the United Nations.
Creamland is one of the last traditional monarchies in the world. The Dairy King is the sovereign and has absolute power, with lesser authority vested in the Queen and the three Princesses. The Kingdom of Creamland is a corporate state like Disney Universe, as well as a member of the United Nations. Creamland is among the top 25 world economies, ranking at #17 during 2219, and is the world's top exporter of dairy products.
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History
Creamland was created on January 1, 2198 by a complex land transfer between the nation of Switzerland, the cantons of Berne and Valais, and Creamland Incorporated as a independent corporate state following the Disney Universe model. In exchange for a direct payment of 50 million zenny followed by 12 years of Switzerland earning 10% of Creamland's GDP (with a minimum annual payment of 10 million zenny), Creamland would be considered an independent nation within Swiss territory. The decision to grant Creamland these privileges was not without controversy, but as time has passed, public opinion toward Creamland has significantly improved.
On January 1, 2210, Creamland completed its payments to Switzerland and was given sponsorship by the Swiss into the United Nations. On the same day, Creamland signed a new mutual defense agreement with the Swiss, formalizing the Swiss protection of Creamland in exchange for an additional yearly payment to the Swiss government. Additionally, Creamland maintains its own small security force that also acts as its internal police, authorized by the Dairy King to do whatever is necessary to protect the people of Creamland.
Government
Creamland is a corporate state managed by an absolute monarch. Presently, Creamland's sovereign is CEO-Monarch His Royal Majesty The Dairy King, formerly Yaniv Baumann. The board of directors of Creamland Incorporated have influence over the operations of the firm, but have no legal power over the Kingdom of Creamland itself. The absolute power of the state rests with His Royal Majesty, with a limited number of professional bureaucrats beneath him to manage paperwork.
The other members of the royal family include Her Serene Highness the Dairy Queen, formerly Princess Annette of Bernadotte, Duchess of Västergötland, Sweden; Her Serene Highness Princess Vanity; Her Serene Highness Princess Pride; and Her Serene Highness Princess Reason. The parents of the Dairy King, Hershel and Nora Baumann, do not formally have royal styles, though they are also stockholders in Creamland Incorporated.
The theory of government used in Creamland is a form of Neo-Objectivism that focuses on the protection of individual rights and the protection of free trade between individuals. The individual subjects of the Dairy King only have rare contact with the state. Permanent residents of Creamland are not subject to taxation or conscription of any kind, and are free to do whatever it is they wish so long as it does not infringe on the freedom of others. What government services exist are maintained by the revenues of Creamland Incorporated as well as by voluntary contributions by citizens to narrowly defined general funds for various essential services. Additional funds are raised by sales and use taxes levied on visitors to the nation.
Law
Creamland is a signatory to most international law treaties, and will extradite wanted criminals to Switzerland or other UN nations on request. It maintains a single jail on the southern edge of the city where prisoners of the state are kept until they are processed in the Court of the Dairy King. The Dairy King's court meets whenever necessary, and its proceedings are televised across Creamland for the interest (some have claimed entertainment) of the citizenry.
Creamland's legal code is short, filling a small pamphlet that all visitors to the kingdom are required to read. The first law establishes the Dairy King as an absolute monarch: "What the Dairy King says goes." The laws which follow deal with two topics; the protection of individual rights and the protection of free trade between individuals. There is no welfare state in Creamland, nor are there any state-provided services that are not paid for by individuals who make arrangements with Creamland Incorporated. Unless your behavior infringes on the freedom of others (or worse, their property), visitors and citizens of Creamland enjoy freedom of action unheard of in most of the civilized world.
In the twenty-two year history of Creamland, less than a hundred cases have been tried by the Court of the Dairy King. Almost all of this caseload occurred in the first five years of Creamland and were used to establish the rough parameters of the Creamland legal code. There is no appeals process to the Court of the Dairy King, and the administration of justice tends to occur within 24 hours of the decision or less.
Geography
Creamland covers 5 km2 in area, a square parcel of land that rests between Berne and Valais with the Rhone River (renamed the "Cream River" while in Creamland's borders) running through its northern section. Almost all of the land in Creamland is dedicated to the Creamland dairy factory, though all of its operations are underground to preserve the natural beauty of the landscape.
Creamland has a temperate Mediterranean climate. Summers are warm and humid at times with periodic rain. Winters tend to be cloudy and foggy with some snow.
Demographics
All citizens of Creamland live in Creamland City, an urban area created to appeal to tourists while being functional for its main population of Creamland dairy factory workers. Most of the urban density is immediately around Creamland Castle, the location of the main entrance to the underground Creamland production plant as well as the home of the Creamland royal family.
Economy
Creamland is a dominant producer of dairy-related products worldwide, with satellite plants located in Bangladesh, Shanghai, Krasnoyarsk (Siberia), Regina (Saskatchewan) and Anapu (Brazil). The Creamland plant is the largest of the six, and is unique among industrial agribusiness facilities as being one of the deepest publically-owned facilities in Europe. Creamland City also attracts a considerable amount of tourist income every year, as well as being the point of contact for direct sales of dairy products.
Controversies
The Dairy King demands a drug-free workplace, but does not have a minimum age for the consumption of alcohol or tobacco products outside of a work setting. This loophole makes Creamland a popular weekend attraction for young people, who see Creamland as a "weekend spring break". The Dairy King, despite complaints from permanent residents, has made no effort to change this perception, likely because the tourist traffic makes him very wealthy.
Aside from the bars in the hotels along the northern bank of the Cream River, there is one pub in central Creamland city, the Hearty Milkmaid. The Hearty Milkmaid is remarkable for two features. First, it is a very large pub, taking up three full stories in a warehouse-sized building to accommodate tourist and native demand. Second, the Hearty Milkmaid is immediately across the street from the police station, which is discreetly concealed behind a picturesque facade, allowing for the efficient and speedy removal of problematic patrons.
Individuals whose alcohol consumption gets out of hand, particularly the young, are typically dealt with by being captured and sent across the river into Berne. Once individuals enter Switzerland, they are again under the weight of Swiss law, and are turned over to authorities in the nearby city of Lenk. The police in Lenk administer sobriety tests to the former guests of Creamland, determine them to be in violation of public inebriation statues, and fine them vigorously before sending them home. The fines leveled by Lenk are among the harshest in central Europe, and are claimed by their detractors to account for over a third of Lenk's yearly income.
