Union of West Richland states
Union of West Richland States | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Flag
 Coat of arms
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| Motto: "Unio Civitatum Unitum" "Union of States United" | |||||||
| Anthem: God Save the Union | |||||||
 Map of the UWRS as of September 26, 2024 | |||||||
| Status | Active | ||||||
| Location | West Richland, United States | ||||||
| Capital | Gramen | ||||||
| Official languages | English | ||||||
| Recognised national languages | Spanish, German, Dutch, Japanese | ||||||
| Ethnic groups (2024) |
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| Religion (2024) |
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| Demonym(s) | West Richlandite | ||||||
| Government | Democracy | ||||||
• President | Brentley Beebe | ||||||
• Vice Presidents | Garrett Droppo, Landon Swanson | ||||||
| Legislature | Government Vote | ||||||
| 3 members (elected) | |||||||
| 7 members | |||||||
| Independence from the United States | |||||||
• Independence | Feb. 23, 2024 | ||||||
• Constitution ratified | Feb. 23, 2024 | ||||||
| Area | |||||||
• Total | 2.58 km2 (1.00 sq mi) | ||||||
| Population | |||||||
• 2024 estimate | 112 | ||||||
| Membership | 44 | ||||||
| Currency | Ikean, Flugelcoin | ||||||
| Time zone | UTC-8 (PST) | ||||||
• Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) | ||||||
| Date format | MM/DD/YYYY | ||||||
| Driving side | right | ||||||
| Calling code | +1 | ||||||
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The Union of West Richland States (UWRS) is a North American micronation that is located within the city of West Richland, Washington. It has 44 subdivisions and over 100 citizens. The country is entirely surrounded by the United States of America. It is classified as a democracy. Elections happen every half-year, from May 27 to May 31 and November 26 to November 30. The people elect one president and two vice presidents, and then the president appoints 7 heads of ministries. The country was founded on February 23, 2024 in the state of Pinnacle by Brentley Beebe, Landon Swanson, and Garrett Droppo. It was a successor state to the Republic of 11 that was located in the current states of Krakenstan and Ezthraina. Since its founding, the UWRS has risen to gain more than 120 citizens. It has had multiple cold wars with other local micronations, including the First Lukewarm War, the Second Lukewarm War, and the Gibble War.
History
First Day
The Union of West Richland States was founded on the 23rd of February, 2024. It was founded in what is currently the state of Pinnacle by Brentley Beebe, Landon Swanson, and Garrett Droppo. Landon and Garrett were not interested in being the country’s president, so Brentley was elected. About half an hour after the founding, Brentley tried to instate a monarchy and ensued the First UWRS Civil War. The war lasted for about 2 minutes and resulted in the country returning to democracy. At about 6:00 PM, they wrote a constitution. About an hour later, Brentley made a flag for his state, and he was so proud of it that he decided to make it the new flag of the whole country. Landon and Garrett thought the old flag was better, but Brentley insisted on replacing it with the new one. This started the War of the Flags. The war lasted for about 2 minutes and ended with a compromise that both flags would be official. (This compromise was later reversed in a public vote.) About 2 hours after that, Brentley realized that the constitution didn’t say that the country was a democracy, so he took advantage of this by trying to turn it into a dictatorship. He told Garrett to get him a drink from the fridge or else he would tax him. Garrett refused to do this. Instead, he hid the flag of the country and started the Second UWRS Civil War. The war lasted for about 10 minutes and resulted in the country returning to democracy again.
The Lukewarm Wars
The following Monday, the government was able to convince the local middle school to join the country as the Enterprise Autonomous Area. Later that day, a person named Jase found out about the country and decided to start his own rival country called Jacksonville, which was a dictatorship. He was able to get around 2 or 3 members into his country. Then, he declared war on the UWRS, starting the First Lukewarm War. There were no actual battles in the war, and Jacksonville didn't talk to the UWRS very much, besides just giving empty threats. On the 10th of March, Jase called the UWRS government and told them that he didn't want to lead his country anymore, so he requested to join the UWRS. The government accepted his request to join. The next day, he asked the government if he could become the head of the country's CIA. It took the government two days to make a decision, but on March 13th, they created a plan. They talked to Jase and told him that they didn't trust him enough to make him the head of the CIA, but they would promote him to Head of Construction. The position would be useless since the country didn't have anything to build, but they hoped it would make Jase satisfied. Unfortunately, Jase did not like this deal. He decided to declare independence from the UWRS and make another new country called the Ohio Republic. After he declared independence, he immediately declared war on the UWRS, starting the Second Lukewarm War. This time, his country only got 1 other member. Once again, there were no battles in the war, and the Ohio Republic didn't talk to the UWRS at all. On the 25th of April, Brentley talked to the two members of the Ohio Republic, and they agreed to dissolve their country, although Brentley has no recollection of this happening.
The Gibble War and Elections
On May 14 at around 11:00 AM, Landon and Garrett decided to look for more people to join the country. The first people they asked were two people named Levi and Dayton. Instead of joining the UWRS, they decided to start their own country called Gibble and declare war on the country. Originally, all the members of their country had equal power, but they quickly switched to a presidential system with Levi as the president. In the next 30 minutes, they got 3 more members, one of which was a spy from the UWRS. At about 11:45 AM, Garrett decided to write a peace treaty called the "Treaty of Ligma". He showed it to their government and they read it and then ripped it up. They then tried to write their own peace treaty, which said "we own your country" in very fine print. Landon and Garrett signed it before noticing that, but the president didn't sign, so it wasn't official. After this, Garrett decided to start his own neutral country called the "Peace State of Ezthraina". He did this because he thought that it would be easier to negotiate a peace treaty if a neutral country oversaw it. The next day, Levi tried to buy nuclear weapon blueprints from Garrett, but he said that they cost $1, which Levi did not have at the time. On May 17, Landon decided to write another peace treaty called the "Treaty of Ezthraina". He showed the treaty to Levi, but he refused to sign it and then said that he would nuke the UWRS. On May 20, Levi told Landon that after school was over that day, he would nuke all of the Tri-Cities and then leave his own country. He was not able to actually nuke the Tri-Cities even though he said he did, but he did leave Gibble, which left Dayton as the new President. On May 22, Landon showed the Treaty of Ezthraina to Dayton, and he signed it without reading it. Among other things, the treaty said that Gibble would have to stop fighting and that it would be annexed into the UWRS. After the treaty was signed, Garrett also rejoined the country. Ever since then, the UWRS has been a peaceful country. From June 28 to June 30, the UWRS had its first presidential election. There were two candidates: Brentley Beebe, who was the current president of the country, and Casey Sloughter. In a landslide vote of 6-0, Brentley was reelected as the president of the UWRS. After the election and up to the present day, the UWRS has focused more on improving its government, since there have been no more rival countries to fight.
Politics and government
The Union of West Richland States operates as a democratic republic, characterized by a system of governance where the president elects heads of ministries and then has to approve of their decisions. There are multiple laws in place that prevent the president from abusing power.
Legislature
The legislative system in the UWRS works like this: First, a vice president or a head of a ministry can suggest decisions to make to the president, or the president can come up with ideas. If the decision being made is a law that will affect the public, then the president and both vice presidents have to sign it. If it is not, then only the president has to approve of it.
Political parties
The Union of West Richland States (UWRS) initially operated as a partyless state but saw the emergence of the Imperial Union Party, which was founded on June 13th, 2024. The founding members believed that structured political organizations would help people achieve better cooperation. The Imperial Union Party focuses on consistently doing things to gain territory. After this, another person named Casey was inspired to create another party called the Defendal Party. It focuses on improving the country's safety and providing increased protection. The shift to a party-based system is an example of the UWRS's evolution towards more organized political engagement.
| Logo | Name | Party Leader | Spectrum | Ideologies | Lower House | Upper House |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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Imperial Union Party | Brentley Beebe | Center Right | Imperialism | 3 / 7
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3 / 3
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Defendal Party | Casey Sloughter | Center Left | Social Liberalism | 1 / 7
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0 / 3
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Law and order
Laws are enforced in trials by the judge. The judge is appointed by the president, but the president cannot control anything that the judge does in a trial. The UWRS has a total of 20 laws, which are in a list below. (Important Note: "rival bullets" are a type of Nerf gun bullet)
- If you commit murder, you must not be let back into the country and must be shot with 50 rival bullets.
- If you are the president, you cannot threaten people to get them to comply with something that isn’t a law. You also cannot ban people from entering the country if they have not committed murder. If you do one of these things, you will be shot with 20 rival bullets.
- If you steal, you will be shot with 15 rival bullets.
- If you commit treason, you must be shot with 20 rival bullets.
- If you smoke or vape, you will be shot with 100 rival bullets.
- Slavery is illegal. Must be freed. 50 rival bullets.
- If you print money without the president’s permission, you will be shot with 7 rival bullets and the money will get shredded.
- If the president breaks any law, they will be fired and replaced by one of the vice presidents. The vice presidents will work together to decide which one of them will be the president.
- If one of the vice presidents or the head of a ministry breaks any law, they will be fired and the president will decide who will replace them.
- If you do drugs or drink alcohol, you will be shot with 20 rival bullets.
- If you electrocute someone, you will be shot with 10 rival bullets.
- If you commit arson, you will be shot with 20 rival bullets.
- If you bribe the judge, you will be shot with 10 rival bullets.
- If you torture someone, you will be shot with 50 rival bullets over the course of an hour.
- If you are not a part of the military and you bomb something, you will be shot with 60 rival bullets.
- If you perform an experiment on a human without their permission, the same experiment will be done to you.
- If you are the president, you cannot change the country’s system of government to anything other than a democracy. You also cannot stop the judge from having a trial and you can’t overturn the judge’s rulings. If you do one of these things, you will be shot with 30 rival bullets.
- If you are the president and you try to stop an election from happening, try to invalidate the results of an election, or try to ban someone from running in an election, you will be shot with 30 rival bullets.
- If you try to rig a public vote in any way, you will be shot with 15 rival bullets.
- If you kidnap any living thing, you will be shot with 40 rival bullets.
Military
The military of the Union of West Richland States (UWRS) is organized with a clear chain of command and a variety of weaponry, including both non-lethal and conventional military weapons. The structure and equipment of the military are as follows:
Structure
Commander-in-Chief: The president of the country also serves as the Commander-in-Chief, and decides when to declare war and when to surrender.
Head of Military: The current head of military is Paxton Richards. The head of military runs the military and makes all major military decisions except for starting and ending wars.
Soldiers: Soldiers are citizens who have volunteered to be in the military. They are the main fighters in battles, forming the backbone of the military.
Branches: The UWRS military is divided into several branches, each specializing in different types of warfare and operations. They are the Infantry, Air Force, and Naval divisions.
Weaponry: The UWRS military uses a combination of non-lethal and conventional weaponry to equip its forces:
• Nerf Guns: Used for training and non-lethal engagements.
• Airsoft Guns: Employed in both training and simulated combat scenarios.
• Conventional Military Weapons: Includes firearms, explosives, and other standard military equipment used in actual combat situations. The military has not made any of these, but it has many blueprints.
Notable Conflicts
The UWRS has been involved in several significant conflicts:
• The First UWRS Civil War
• The Flag War
• The Second UWRS Civil War
• The First Lukewarm War
• The Second Lukewarm War
• The Gibble War
Ministries
The Union of West Richland States operates with a structured government, including several key ministries responsible for managing various aspects of governance and public services. Each ministry plays a crucial role in maintaining the welfare and functionality of the micronation.
Ministry of Internal Affairs
President: Brentley
The Ministry of Internal Affairs is the most powerful ministry in the country. The head of the ministry has the job of appointing the heads of every other ministry. They also oversee the decisions of every ministry except for the Ministry of Justice. It works to maintain social order and improve the quality of life for citizens.
Ministry of Justice
Judge: Eli
The Ministry of Justice administers the legal system, including having trials and carrying out punishments. It ensures justice and fairness in legal proceedings and manages legal disputes within the UWRS. It is also the only ministry that the Ministry of Internal Affairs doesn't control.
Ministry of Public Voting
Voting Overseer: Landon
The Ministry of Public Voting is responsible for creating the Google forms for people to vote on, making sure that all votes are valid, and announcing the voting results to the rest of the government. To prevent the president from abusing power, the voting overseer is appointed by the judge.
Ministry of Defense
Head of Military: Paxton
The Ministry of Defense is responsible for overseeing national security and managing the military forces. This includes strategic defense planning, military training, and ensuring the protection of the UWRS's sovereignty.
Ministry of Finance
Treasurer: Eli
The Ministry of Finance manages the economic resources of the UWRS, including budgeting, financial planning, and economic policy. It oversees the national treasury and works to ensure the stability and growth of the micronation's economy.
Ministry of Propaganda and Design
Head of Propaganda and Design: Casey
The Ministry of Propaganda and Design controls all the publicity of the UWRS government, including overseeing the country's YouTube channel. It also designs and produces many important governmental items.
Ministry of Entertainment
Jester: "Travis"
The Ministry of Entertainment promotes having public activities and events. It supports arts, entertainment, and recreational activities to enhance the cultural life of the UWRS.
Ministry of Healthcare
Head of Healthcare: Liam
The Ministry of Healthcare is another completely useless ministry, since there are no hospitals or any kind of medical care facilities inside the UWRS's borders. It was created when Liam decided to leave the country and the government had to convince him to rejoin.
Foreign relations
Unilateral recognition
All UN member states except for 
Ireland
Vatican City
Palestine
Kosovo
Abkhazia
Northern Cyprus
Western Sahara
South Ossetia
Taiwan
Transnistria
Somaliland
Mutual recognition
All UNWN member states
Administrative regions
The Union of West Richland States has an simple and inclusive claim system for its constituencies, allowing citizens to easily join and establish new states. The nation's administrative divisions are designed to cater to the diverse needs of its citizens.
Claim System
Joining the UWRS: To become part of the UWRS, people can talk to a member of the government to ask about joining the country. Then, the president can approve or deny their request to join. If the location of the place that wants to join is not in the Tri-Cities, then it cannot join the UWRS. Upon joining, it is recommended to name your state, make a flag for it, and provide its location, but these are not requirements. To maintain privacy and security, addresses of states are not posted on maps of the country.
Establishing a State: Each area that joins the UWRS is automatically considered a state. States can be changed to become territories or autonomous areas if the president approves of it.
Types of Constituencies
States: States are the primary administrative divisions in the UWRS, with each house being recognized as a state. Each state's flag is designed by the residents of the state, unless there are no residents.
Territories: Territories are regions that may not have full statehood but are still under the jurisdiction of the UWRS. Territories are usually created if a state is in the Tri-Cities but is outside of West Richland.
Autonomous Areas: These are special regions within the UWRS that have a degree of self-governance. Autonomous areas can make new laws that are specific to their area, but they cannot remove any national laws from the area.
| Flag | Arms/Seal/Emblem (optional) |
Name | Area | Population | Joining Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| States | |||||
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none | Amber | 0.00094 km² | 2 | March 3, 2024 |
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none | House of Brandon | ~0.001 km² | 6 | February 23, 2024 |
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Canis Terra | 0.0118 km² | 0 | August 14, 2024 |
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none | CobiLands | 0.00029 km² | 3 | February 27, 2024 |
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none | House of Collin | ~0.001 km² | N/A | February 27, 2024 |
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none | Crinkleshοrt | 0.00036 km² | 4 | April 29, 2024 |
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none | House of Daniel | 0.00028 km² | 4 | February 24, 2024 |
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none | House of Emily | 0.0003 km² | 4 | February 24, 2024 |
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Ezthraina | 0.00031 km² | 4 | February 23 - May 14, 2024 / May 22, 2024 |
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none | Fire Estates | ~0.001 km² | 4 | May 23, 2024 |
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Gladius | ~0.001 km² | 3 | July 28, 2024 |
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Gramen | 0.096888 km² | 0 | May 21, 2024 |
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none | Grizzly Bear | ~0.001 km² | 4 | July 28, 2024 |
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none | House of Harper | ~0.001 km² | 3 | May 22, 2024 |
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none | Hot Rodzilla | ~0.001 km² | 5 | April 29, 2024 |
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none | House | ~0.001 km² | 3 | April 26, 2024 |
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none | Jimmy Neutron | 0.00014 km² | 4 | April 2, 2024 |
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none | House of Kaylee | 0.00024 km² | 5 | February 23, 2024 |
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none | House of Kingston | 0.0004 km² | 5 | February 24, 2024 |
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Krakenstan | 0.00118 km² | 3 | February 23, 2024 |
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none | House of Max | ~0.001 km² | 4 | February 27 - May 14, 2024 / May 22, 2024 |
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none | House of Melanie | ~0.001 km² | 3 | May 22, 2024 |
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none | House of Mrs. Redfield | ~0.001 km² | 2 | March 18, 2024 |
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Orange State | 0.00027 km² | 4 | September 8, 2024 |
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none | House of Paxton | ~0.001 km² | 4 | February ??, 2024 |
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none | Pear | ~0.001 km² | N/A | October 25, 2024 |
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none | House of Penny | ~0.001 km² | 5 | May 14, 2024 |
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none | Pinnacle | 0.00114 km² | 3 | February 23, 2024 |
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none | Ponyville | ~0.001 km² | N/A | October 22, 2024 |
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none | Scullytopia | ~0.001 km² | N/A | October 23, 2024 |
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none | Shoup | ~0.001 km² | N/A | November 1, 2024 |
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none | Spark | ~0.001 km² | N/A | November 1, 2024 |
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none | State | ~0.001 km² | 4 | February 27, 2024 |
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none | House of Teri | 0.00032 km² | 3 | February 24, 2024 |
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none | Towel | ~0.001 km² | 4 | May 22, 2024 |
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none | House of Wyatt | ~0.001 km² | 4 | May 22, 2024 |
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none | Valora | 0.0012 km² | 4 | February 23, 2024 |
| Territories | |||||
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Bateman Island | 0.678 km² | 0 | June 28, 2024 |
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none | House of Beckham | 0.00027 km² | N/A | May 7, 2024 |
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none | House of Matthew | ~0.001 km² | N/A | June 4, 2024 |
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UWRS Pasco-Kennewick Territory | 1.7 km² | 0 | September 5, 2024 |
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UWRS Richland Territory | 3.921 km² | 0 | September 5, 2024 |
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Slushy Land | 0.00034 km² | 5 | July 12, 2024 |
| Autonomous Areas | |||||
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Enterprise Autonomous Area | 1.96 km² | 0 | February 26, 2024 |
Geography and climate
| Climate data for the Union of West Richland States | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 66 (18.9) |
71.1 (21.7) |
75 (23.9) |
86 (30) |
97 (36.1) |
100.9 (38.3) |
104 (40) |
102.9 (39.4) |
97 (36.1) |
86 (30) |
73.9 (23.3) |
62.1 (16.7) |
104 (40) |
| Average high °F (°C) | 38.7 (3.7) |
46.6 (8.1) |
57.4 (14.1) |
64.6 (18.1) |
72 (22.2) |
78.6 (25.9) |
85.6 (29.8) |
84.7 (29.3) |
76.8 (24.9) |
63.7 (17.6) |
47.8 (8.8) |
38.1 (3.4) |
63 (17.2) |
| Average low °F (°C) | 25.9 (-3.4) |
28.8 (-1.8) |
33.3 (0.7) |
37.9 (3.3) |
44.4 (6.9) |
50.5 (10.3) |
55 (12.8) |
54.9 (12.7) |
48 (8.9) |
39.6 (4.2) |
31.8 (-0.1) |
26.2 (-3.2) |
39.7 (4.3) |
| Record low °F (°C) | -16.1 (-26.7) |
-16.1 (-26.7) |
8.1 (-13.3) |
21 (-6.1) |
27 (-2.8) |
32 (0) |
39 (3.9) |
39.9 (4.4) |
28.9 (-1.7) |
12.9 (-10.6) |
-9.9 (-23.3) |
-11 (-23.9) |
−16.1 (−26.7) |
| Source: Weatherbase[1] | |||||||||||||
Economy
The economy of the Union of West Richland States is very small compared to the economies of macronations, but it does make a considerable amount of money for a micronation. The country has a strong and stable currency and has plans to create a banking system.
Exports
The main export of the UWRS is plants. Casey, the leader of the Defendal Party, has a big plant sale every year around May. This usually makes at least $500 (100 ikeans). Although, none of the money has gone to the country's government yet.
Currency
The two types of money in the UWRS are the ikeаn and the flugelcоin. Currently, there are 32 ikeans and 27 flugelcoins in circulation. 1 ikeаn is equal to 5 US dollars, and 1 flugelcοin is equal to 1 US dollar. Money can only be printed with permission from the president.
Banking System
The UWRS has a plan for a banking system, but it has not been implemented yet. The proposal says that the bank would be managed by Brandon, who would oversee a secure deposit and withdrawal process. Deposited funds would be held by the bank until requested. You could also put money on an IKFL card (the UWRS's form of debit card). Brandon would have a Google slide shared with everyone who uses the bank that shows everyone's balance. To ensure security and prevent theft of funds, only Brandon would be able to edit the slide.
Culture
Holidays
| Date | Name | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| February 23 | Independence Day | A day honoring the country's independence from the United States of America. |
| March 15 | Flag Day | A day celebrating the day that the Flag Voting ended, which decided what the one flag of the UWRS would be. |
| May 22 | Unification Day | A day celebrating the signing of the Treaty of Ezthraina, which annexed Gibble into the UWRS. |
| August 26 | Wiki Day | A day celebrating the day that this article was completed. |
| The fourth Thursday of November | Ιkeasgiving | A day honoring Ikea. This day is the result of an inside joke between the president, Brentley, and the co-vice president, Landon. |
Education
The UWRS has one of the most prominent education systems, having one school in its borders that acts as if it is the country's capital, since most of its members go there.
Spoken languages
The UWRS has one official language, which is English. It also has four recognized national languages, which are Spanish, German, Dutch, and Japanese. For a language to become a recognized national language, at least one person in the country has to know it or be learning it.