United Commonwealth
United Commonwealth of Continental States | |
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 Flag
 Coat of arms
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Motto: Una stamus, dividui cadimus (Latin: "United We Stand, Divided We Fall") εἴ τις οὐ θέλει ἐργάζεσθαι μηδὲ ἐσθιέτω (Greek: "He who does not work, neither shall he eat") | |
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Anthem: "The Commonwealth of Toil" | |
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| Capital | Chicago |
| Largest city | New York City |
| Official languages | English |
| Demonym(s) | Continental |
| Government | Unitary Landonist–Continentalist one-party socialist republic |
| Nathaniel Scribner (CPUC) | |
| Anthony Malito | |
| Coretta Williams | |
| Legislature | Central Congress (Unicameral) |
| Establishment | |
| January 18 1917 | |
| July 29 1921 | |
| May 1 1922 | |
• Victory in Great War I | 25 May 1938 |
• Passage of the Third Edition of the Continental Code | December 9 1948 |
• Victory in the Great War I | 5 September 1965 |
| Population | |
• 2021 estimate |
 250,760,091 (5th) |
• 2020 census |
250,759,875 (5th) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2020 estimate |
• Total |
$11.8 trillion (2nd) |
• Per capita |
$47,136 (22nd) |
| GDP (nominal) | 2020 estimate |
• Total |
 $13.5 trillion (2nd) |
• Per capita |
$54,180 (9th) |
| HDI |
.928 very high |
| Currency | Commonwealth Dollar (Ȼ, Ȼ$) |
| Time zone | UTC−05:30 |
| Driving side | right |
| Calling code | +522 |
| Internet TLD | .ucom |
The United Commonwealth of Continental States (UCCS or U.C.C.S.), commonly known as the United Commonwealth (UC or U.C.), or the Continental States (CS or C.S.) is a country located in North America is a unitary Landonist-Continentalist one-party socialist state consisting of multiple republics and autonomous areas. It is the second largest country by total area and it is the world's third most populous country. The national capital is Chicago and the most populous city is New York City. Other major cities include Boston, Toronto, Philadelphia, Detroit, Atlanta, Quebec City, Louisville, and Miami.
The United Commonwealth was first inhabited by Paleo-Indians who originated ultimately from Siberia at least 12,000 years ago during the Middle Paleolithic period. Various Precolumbian civilizations and cultures thrived in the North American mainland, including the Algonquin and the Muscogee. The British, French, and Spanish established colonies in what is now the present-day United Commonwealth. Canada and the United States emerged from the British and French colonies in the North American mainland, with the latter gaining independence during the American Revolutionary War as the former Thirteen Colonies along the East Coast. The United States rapidly expanded across North America under the pretext of manifest destiny, acquiring territory through both diplomatic and military means, oftentimes killing and displacing Native Americans. Slavery was a central issue for the United States and was the main cause behind the American Civil War. Shortly after the war ended in Union victory, the United States government collapsed following the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln and other key U.S. officials. The reconsolidation of the remnant U.S. government as the United Commonwealth and the breakaway of several U.S. states as independent countries led to the War of Contingency, which ended with the reduction of the United Commonwealth to only 19 of the former 29 U.S. states. The United Commonwealth under the Federalists was checkered with periods of calamity and stability as rapid economic growth coincided with rising levels of inequality and political corruption.
The Continental Revolutionary War resulted in the Continentalists overthrowing the Federalist government, exiling them to the Antilles. The Continentalists centralized the national economy and state power, and established the goal of creating a self-sufficient socialist state operating on the principles of Landonism and a homegrown variant of Continentalism. During Great War I, the United Commonwealth led the Landonist Internationale war faction and successfully reunified with the Northeast Union and annexed the former Canadian provinces of Quebec, the Maritimes, and eastern Ontario, further enlarging the country. In Great War II, it emerged as an established world power, playing a significant role in the European theater of the war. During the Cold War, it competed with its longtime neighborring rival, Sierra, and Continental rivals, Germany and the United Kingdom. The period saw some of the most significant 20th-century scientific and technological achievements, including the world's first man-made satellite and the launching of the first animals and humans into spaceflight.
The United Commonwealth has the second-largest economy in the world, with a GDP of Ȼ$13.8 trillion, and features the world's second-largest manufacturing economy. It is a highly developed country and is also one of the most ethnically, religiously, and linguistically diverse nations in the world. Since the 1970s, it has operated a mixed economy which synthesizes syndicalism with a socialist-oriented market economy in adherence to Landonist orthodoxy and Continentalism. Its labor force is among the world's largest and the most unionized. It is the second-largest importer in the world and the third-largest exporter. The United Commonwealth is a member of the Organization for Mutual Economic Assistance and Development (OMEAD), Chattanooga Pact and the League of Nations.
Etymology
From 1920 to 1921, the Continentalist Party maintained the nations former name; as the the United Commonwealth of America. Aeneas Warren, who was staunchly in favor of preserving the legacy of the United States of America sought to revert back to the former name in 1921. By 1921 local elections concluded, offically reorganizing the subdivisions of the old United Commonwealth and former United States. All states officially adopted Continentalist naming semantics by 1921, which signaled for Warren and the Continentalist Party to change the nation's name. To distinguish themselves from other Anglo-American nations and to create a unified nationality, the demonym for the nation was established as 'Continentals' which retains much of the ambiguous notions associated with being American, where one can be of any race or religion.
During the ratification of the Continental States Constitution, the name United Commonwealth of Continental States was adopted by the Central Committee of the United Commonwealth, the National Committee and the Central Committee of the Continentalist Party. The name also signified that the United Commonwealth was comprised of semi-autonomous, federalized union of states ideologically tied to Continentalism. Several Appalachian continentalist states, retained their ideological leanings to Landonism, by incorporating it into their official state names. The retention of the name United Commonwealth was seen as reactionary by some far-left elements within the Party, who saw it as a continuation of the Federalist-Republican regime. Because of the ideological differences the simplified usage of Continental States and Continentalist States is used frequently and is usage of the names full or partial name is often seen as an ideological stance.
In political rhetoric of the nation, the nation is referred to as this United Commonwealth of Continental States, an allegory to the preservation of the Union. Warren during an opening speech at the Central Congress, established the political tradition of invoking the name of the country;
| “ | As we have fought to establish a more sacred union, one that enshrines the working class into its national fabric, let it be known that invoking such a name must be carried in high regard. For it is not a name tied to any race; but that to a single unifying concept that unites the people as one. Established by Providence, the United States was a most auspicious experiment that was ultimately bastardized by capitalism. Today we stand in the spirit of the American people to form a new idealized version of what the future can be. Indeed, a continental order, one that will one day incorporate the shores of the Pacific Ocean, the fringes of the Arctic Circle, where the worker will rule supreme. On this day, July 19th, 1922 in the year of our Lord, we establish this United Commonwealth of Continental States. | ” |
| — Secretariat Aeneas Warren, Proclamation of the Continental States, December 20, 1921 | ||
History
Revolution and establishment (1886–1922)
Revolutionary sentiments within the United Commonwealth began to spread due to the Depression of 1882–1885 and the 1886 Haymarket affair. Labor unions throughout various industrial cities began working alongside socialists to organize workers against, what they perceived to be, exploitative capitalism. During this time of political upheaval various labor and left-wing groups flourished including the American Federation of Labor, Knights of Labor, Industrial Workers of the World and the Socialist Labor Party of America. These organizations initially rejected revolutionary socialism and believed that the current government could be transformed into a tool to support the working class. Throughout the 1900s these positions regarding reformism versus revolutionary politics were softened with the introduction of Isaiah Landon's teachings.
In 1901 the Socialist Party of America adopted various components of Landonism to support the establishment of a revolutionary socialist state. In 1904 the Industrial Workers of the World, the Socialist Party of America, and the Socialist Labor Party formed the United Labor Front. Aeneas Warren returned to the United Commonwealth in 1907 where he began promoting a socialist revolution in the public sphere, as well as within the governing bodies of the various labor unions and social democratic parties. In 1910 and 1911 workers' councils began to spring up across the country, with large support from rural Appalachia and urban Chicago. Support for the workers' councils culminated in the government initiating a suppression of left-wing activity.
Divisions among the Federalists led to the splintering of the party, further weakening the state. On 8 July 1915, the governments of Kentucky, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Indiana declared secession, forming the Eastern Provisional Government. Aeneas Warren drew financial and material support from the Northeast Union in an effort to seize the four states in rebellion. Throughout the mid 1910s, the each four states fell to the Continental Revolutionary Army. On May 1 1917, the Continentalist Party was founded on the principles of revolutionary socialism and continentalism; it was declared the sole legal party in the four occupied states.
In December of 1917, the governments of Mississippi, Alabama, and Georiga were overthrown by black sharecroppers, establishing three individual socialist republics. South Carolina and the Kingdom of Florida declared war on the newly formed socialist states in an effort to stop the spread of socialism. Warren pledged his support for the southern states and deployed material to the south. A short multifront war ensured among the Federalists and various other agencies aligned against the socialist agenda. In 1918, Seamus Callahan led an internal coup that overthrew the federal government in Chicago, ending the conflict in the north. Theodore Attenbourgh, his cabinet, and an array of political enemies were executed in the aftermath of the surrender.
The tide of the war quickly shifted in favor of the socialist revolutionaries, and the governments of Acadiana, Carolina, and Virginia surrendered to the Provisional Socialist Authority of the United Commonwealth on September 10 1919. In 1920 the United Commonwealth invaded Florida and the Northeast Union in support of socialist revolutionaries; both declared their surrender in March of the same year. On April 20 1922, a conference of plenipotentiary delegations from each state approved and ratified the Union Treaty on the Creation of the Continental States and the Declaration of Liberation and Independence, formally establishing the United Commonwealth of Continental States. Both documents were ratified by the first Central Congress and signed by the heads of the state delegations. On May 1 1922, the formal proclamation of the republic was made from Lincoln Park.
Early commonwealth, regime of Callahan (1922-1947)
On November 14 1922, Callahan was named the General Secretary of the Continentalist Party by the National Committee, while Coleman Mueller, the Vice-Secretariat, became the 2nd Secretariat. During the first years of the commonwealth, the National Board for Industrialization and Cooperation (NBIC) was developed as the government agency in charge of rebuilding the nation. From 1922 until 1928, the NBIC was designated as sole operator of the economy. Callahan executed the Waldmann Plot in 1923, which saw the purge of Zhou Xinyue and his officers within the Continental Revolutionary Army. Callahan became the undisputed paramount leader within the country after his Revolutionary Front of the Continentalist Party seized the majority in both the party and state apparatus during the 1924 committee selections and the 1926 general election.
Callahan expanded Kentucky Bend, and established a vast network of re-eduction camps across the country. In 1923 the informal camp system was placed under the control of the Continental Commissariat for Rehabilitation and Corrections (CCRC), detaining millions of citizens for the purpose of ideological rehabilitation. Detainees were instructed to read dogma of the Continentalist Party including Marx and Landon. Former venture capitalists, industrialists, large landowners, exploitative salesmen and wealth managers were placed into the agricultural division of the rehabilitation division, only to be released after confessing loyalty to the Marxist-Landonism.
In 1924 the Commission for Financial Stability and Fair Practice (CFSFP) was established to control inflation and to rebuild the financial industry. In 1929 the Central Committee and the Central Congress relinquished control over major industrial sectors of the commonwealth, allowing for various cooperatives to form. It was an economic priority of the government to promote electrification, industrialization, and communal ownership of agricultural machinery. Land reforms, controlled by the Commissariat of Agriculture, were instituted to confiscate agricultural assets from families of the South who formerly held slaves in the 1860s. Sharecroppers who had already worked the land, either as slaves or freed men, were provided landownership as a form of reparations. In place of international socialism, Callahan and his section promoted Socialism on One Continent.
Global conditions significantly declined during the 1930s; on April 9 1931, the Sierran markets crashed which ultimately spurred the Depression of 1931–1934. Both the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (CME) and the New York Bond Market (NYBD) fell nearly 12 percent in market value forcing the National Board to re-nationalize most sectors of the economy. Callahan and the Central Committee set forth a new five year economic plan to redevelop the nation, investing in roads, rails, public housing and the nation's waterways. Cultural attitudes within the nation sharpley turned to a more conservative outlook, with many progressive reforms enacted in the 1920s being reversed.
On September 2 1931, Sierra and the United Commonwealth became embroiled in the Veracruz incident, an incident that resulted in several casualties for both belligerents. Hostilities increased with the September Crisis, prompting Central Committee to reorganize the nation's industrial sector to support a wartime economy. In 1931, the United Commonwealth began supporting the Brazorian United Landonist Relief Front in an effort to spur a revolution. After two years of political uncertainty and popular discontent with the right-wing government, the United Commonwealth invaded Brazoria on April 11 1932. Sierra, Superior, and Tournesol joined together in an effort to repel the Continental forces, beginning the First Great War.
Continental forces entered the revolutionary states of the Maritimes, Quebec, and Ontario in 1932. Landonist revolutionaries were ultimately successful in the Brazorian Revolutionary War and in 1935 the Brazorian Confederation was declared a socialist republic. Callahan solidified Continentalist sentiments in the Canadian states but was unable to install such attitudes in the Bazorian government. Cuba and Bahamas were admitted as republics in 1934 after two independent referendums. Failing to secure the Antilles and Northern Mexico, the Continental populace's attitude towards the world began to sour. Callahan promised during the 1936 campaign that the war would continue until the goal of continental socialism was achieved ultimately costing his Revolutionary Front the majority in the party. Attempting to boost moral in the Continental States, Callahan campaigned for the admission of additional republics; Quebec, the Maritime States, and Ontario were all admitted during the war in 1936. It became the official line of the party in 1937 that the government would sue for peace with Sierra, this was ultimately achieved with the signing of the Treaty of North American Amity and the New Orleans Accords in 1938.
After the First Great War Callahan's regime was embroiled in a year long campaign to prevent Proposition 39 during the 1940 national referendum. It was the first attempt to have a reoccurring question every decennial referendum regarding the legitimacy of entire constitution rather than select elements. The proposition failed, only to pass as Proposition 11 in 1970. Throughout the 1940s Continentalist partisans assisted socialist revolutionaries in Europe, South America, Africa and Asia in an effort to establish revolutionary states. Continental scientists developed the first artificial nuclear reactor, Chicago Pile-1, in 1942. In 1945 United Commonwealth was the second state to test an atomic bomb, only a month after the Kingdom of Sierra. In 1945 the Continental Development Plan was initiated, which saw the creation of new locks and dams on the Continental Maritime Corridors, the expansion of the Tennessee Valley Authority, the initiation of the James Bay Project and Great Recycling and Northern Development Canal.
Midcentury commonwealth, political turmoil (1947-1951)
Amelia Fowler Crawford became the 3rd General Secretary with the death of Callahan on June 1 1947. Callahan's political and economic agenda continued with Crawford's administration. Driven by the ideological divide with the Conference of American States, the United Commonwealth established the Chattanooga Pact. Involved in various proxy wars, the U.C teetered on the brink of war as the Greenlandic Missile Crisis brought the world closer to annihilation. Crawford became a powerless leader as much of the party began to shift away from the Revolutionary Front's clique due to instability and hostility towards peace.
During the 1948 committee selection the party shifted strongly towards the Labor Front. Raymond Beshear, an outspoken opponent of the Revolutionary Front, became the majority leader in the National Committee and promised to see the transformation of the party into a democratic institution. Several legal challenges were brought before the United Commonwealth Supreme Court regarding Crawford's refusal to step down. Crawford feared that Beshear and the Laborers were affiliated with Sierran operatives, and attempted a purge in 1951. The attempt failed and the Revolutionary Guard sided with the National Committee and the Supreme Court; signaling the decline in the autocratic power of the General Secretary.
Democratic socialism, Great War II (1951-1978)
Rupert Gardner succeeded Crawford as Secretariat in 1950 and as General Secretary in 1951. Dedicated to the principles of democratic socialism, internationalism and global prosperity, Gardner created the Organization for Mutual Economic Assistance and Development (OMEAD) as a means to promote socialism and economic development. Several economic reforms were taken by the Labor Front to reduce the government's involvement in the economy, promoting and even more hardline approach to market socialism. Continental policy makers promoted coexistence with capitalist nations while also promoting the development of socialism in the Third World. In 1954 the Continental States became increasingly involved in North Vietnam, introducing combat forces in 1958.
In 1957 launched the second satellite into space in a challenge against CAS, initiating a Space Race in which the United Commonwealth became the first nation to land a man on the moon. During the Space Race the United Commonwealth undertook several educational reforms that promoted the sciences at the heart of early education. Construction of the Continental Interstate System (CIS) and the Continental National Rail (CNR) transformed the nation's infrastructure over the following decades. Migration into major cities dramatically increased, with suburbanization being curtailed by the creation of the Urban Development and Planning Commission (UDPC). Free cooperatives were prioritized during the construction of new urban developments, and the production of final goods and the services industry grew dramatically. With nearly a decade of sustained economic expansion, rapid growth in population and cultural advancements, the nation obtained the status of superpower in 1958.
After France launched an invasion against the Landonist Republic of Spain the Central Congress of the United Commonwealth declared war. Utilizing its massive ore and coal reserves the nation produced nearly 85% of the Allied force's steel, as well as mass producing producing tanks, aircraft and ships for the war effort. Continental forces were drawn into every theatre of war in a consolidated effort to destroy the Axis. Throughout the war the United Commonwealth engaged in smaller insurgencies in British West Africa, German Equatorial Africa, French North Africa and the Dutch East Indies. In the aftermath of the war the United Commonwealth was designated as a permanent member of the League of Nations Security Council.
Contemporary
Geography
Topography, terrain, and hydrology
The United Commonwealth covers a total area of 3,743,287 square miles (9,695,070 km2) and ranks as the third-largest nation (behind that of the China). The highest elevation in the United Commonwealth is Mount Washington, located in the Northeast Union, at at 6,288.2 feet (1,916.6 m) above sea level. The lowest point in the United Commonwealth is the City of New Orleans at -8 feet (-2 meters) below sea level. Major highland regions include the north to south Appalachian Mountains and the Ozarks (considered a plateau). The United Commonwealth encompasses a majority of the Great Lakes Waterway, the entirety of the Saint Lawrence River and the entire portion of the Mississippi River from the confluence of the Ohio River and Upper Mississippi River to the Mississippi River Delta.
Topographically, the United Commonwealth is divided into six physiographic regions; the Atlantic Plain, Appalachian Highlands, Interior Plains, Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Lowlands, Canadian Shield and the Interior Highlands. It is further subdivided into twelve physiographic provinces; the Atlantic Coastal Plain, Piedmont, Blue Ridge, Valley and Ridge, St. Lawrence Valley, Appalachian Plateaus, New England Province, Adirondack, Interior Low Plateaus, Great Plains, Ozark Plateaus and the Ouachita Province.
From the Atlantic Ocean the land transitions in elevation, from sea level, to the Piedmont, the Appalachian Mountains and then finally into the grasslands and plains of the Mississippi River Basin, Great Lakes Basin and the Hudson Bay Basin. Within the interior of the country a large series of navigable rivers dot the landscape. Besides the Ohio, Saint Lawrence and Mississippi Rivers, several smaller navigable rivers are present; the Illinois Waterway, Tennessee River, Kennebec River, Hudson River, Apalachicola River and several others.
Mount Washington, the highest peak and most topographically prominent mountain in the United Commonwealth
View of the Great Lakes from space during early spring
Farmstead located in southern Indiana during the summer
Confluence of the Kanawha River and Ohio River
Lake located in Gaspé Peninsula, Quebec
Swamp in the Atchafalaya Basin, Louisiana
Farms and windmills in Illinois, common scene across the corn belt
View of the largest harbor in the United Commonwealth, New York Harbor
Scenery in the Ozark Mountains
Niagara Falls between Ontario and the Congregationalist States
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Climate
In the United Commonwealth there are in total eleven climate regions according to the Köppen climate classification and five according to the Trewartha climate classification. It is one of few nations to have both a polar climate and a tropics climate, with the lowest recorded temperature in Quebec at -66 °F (-54.4 °C) and the highest recorded temperature in Arkansas recorded at 120 °F (49 °C). Seasonal weather in the United Commonwealth has a great deal of variation and unpredictability. Within the interior of the country tornadoes form between the months of March and June. Along the Gulf Coast and Atlantic Coast the United Commonwealth experiences seasonal Atlantic hurricanes which commonly occur between June 1 and November 20.
In the northern regions of Quebec, the United Commonwealth has an artic climate (ET) with very cold winters and short much cooler summers. Currents from the Artic Ocean and the Labrador Current create conditions for this extremely cold weather. Kuujjuaq, the largest Inuit community in the Autonomous Republic of Nunavik, experiences a subartic climate (Dfc) with a an average high of 30.6 °F (−0.8 °C) and a average low of 14.2 °F (−9.9 °C). In June, Hudson Bay thaws, resulting in mild maritime air from the cold water moderating westerlies. In the interior of the the Canadian Shield the summers are slightly warmer, with mean highs reaching 36.0°F (2.2 °C) and average lows at 17.8 °F (-7.9 °C)
Portions of Ontario, the Congregationalist States, Michigan, the Maritime Republic and the southern half of Quebec are designated as being a part of the humid continental climate (Dfb) classification. During the warmer months these regions average temperatures below 72 °F (22 °C) with summer highs averaging between 70–82 °F (21–28 °C). Cities in this climate include Halifax, Quebec City and Portland, which experience often prolonged winters, and warm, relatively short summers. The Congregationalist States and Maritime Republic are also susceptible to nor'easters during the winter, where high winds and snowfall totals often measure over a foot. Annual precipitation varies, but averages 47.2 inches (1,200 mm) and is plentiful year-round but with a slightly drier summer.
Portions of the nation's breadbasketand a majority of population and industry are located in the hot summer subtype (Dfa) of the humid continental climate. Republics in this region experience cold winters and hot wet summers. Temperatures average at least 71.6 °F (22 °C) in its warmest month, with August and July being the warmest months. Temperature highs during these months tend to be in the high 80s or low 90s °F. Average temperatures during January are near or well below freezing and frost period normally last 4–5 months within this region. In this transitionary zone the growing season spans approximately 155 to 160 days and lasts between the months of early May continuing until mid or late September. Snowfall is common as is heavy precipitation during Spring. Major urban areas in this climate region includes Chicago.
In the southern portion of the Commonwealth the majority of republics are located in climates classified as humid subtropical (also known as warm temperate). Summers are typically long, hot and humid. Monthly mean summer temperatures are normally betweem 81 °F and 24 and 27 °C (24 and 27 °C). Between July and August high temperatures are typically in the high 80s or 90s °F (20s to mid-30s °C). Daytime highs in winter normally are in the 50 to 61 °F (10 to 16 °C) range, while overnight lows are from 36 to 45 °F (2 to 7 °C). Republics in this climate region are major crop producers in due part to the long the growing season which lasts between 180 to 196 days a year. Snowfall varies greatly in the southern region, with cities such as Orlando, Tampa, Houston and New Orleans rarely seeing snowfall. At the northernmost limits of the climate zone, cities such as Philadelphia, New York City and Indianapolis typically see snowfall during the winter. Precipitation is plentiful, with the northern portions experiencing higher precipitation in the summer while the southern portion experiencing higher precipitation during the winter.
Classifications seen in the United Commonwealth include oceanic (Cfb) and tropical monsson climate (Am). These classifications are designated on a relatively small portion of the country. Oceanic climates are present in Appalachia, Cape Cod, Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket, which experience mild summers and cool but not cold winters. Southern Florida and more specifically the city of Miami experiences high winter temperatures, lasting from December to March, range from 76.4–80.3 °F (24.7–26.8 °C). January is the coolest month with an average daily temperature of 68.2 °F (20.1 °C). The wet season in southern Florida usually begins during the month of May and continues through mid-October. During this period, temperatures range between the mid 80s to low 90s (29–35 °C).
Wildlife and conservation
Demographics
Population
The United Commonwealth Census reported 250,760,091 residents as of April 1, 2020. According to the U.C.C.S Population Clock, on January 21st, 2021 the U.C population had a net gain of one person every 100 seconds, or about 864 people per day. The United Commonwealth is the third most populous nation in the world, after China and India. In 2020 the median age of the United Commonwealth was 34.3 years.
In 2018, there was almost 65 million immigrants and children of immigrants within the United Commonwealth, accounting for 26% of the national population. The United Commonwealth has a diverse population; 26 ancestry groups have more than a million members. White Americans of European ancestry, mostly German, Italian, English, Irish, Polish and French from the largest racial group at 64.8% of the population. African-Continental's constitute the largest racial minority, comprising 19.3% of the population. Asian-Continentals comprise the second largest racial minority (the three largest Asian ethnic groups are Chinese, Korean and Indian).
In 2019, out of the U.C foreign-born population, 68% were naturalized citizens, 10% were lawful permanent residents and the remainder were lawful permanent residents. Among current living immigrants to the United Commonwealth, the top five countries of birth are China, India, Ukraine, Syria and Egypt. The United Commonwealth has led the world in refugee resettlement since the 1970s, and in the 1980s and 1990s admitted more refugees than the rest of the world combined.
Approximately 85% of Continentals live within urban areas, including suburbs; about a half reside within cities with a population of 75,000. In 2011, 209 incorporated municipalities had populations over 100,000. New York City with 8,804,190 citizens is the largest city in Anglo-America. Chicago, the United Commonwealth's capitol has 3,120,983 citizens, and is the third largest city in Anglo-America. Philadelphia, Columbus and Indianapolis are the only other cities within the country with over a million residents. Many U.C metropolitan areas in the Northern United Commonwealth experienced depopulation during the 1980s and 1990s, with many relocating to the South and to Brazoria. Brazoria has the largest overseas Continental population.
As of 2019, 64% of American age 18 and over were married, 11% were widowed, 7% were divorced and 18% had never been married. As of 2021, the total fertility rate stood at 1.78 children per women. In 2015, the average age at first birth was 24, and 11% of births were to unmarried women. In 2019 the U.C had one of the lowest rates (11%) of children living with a single parent; the rates in Sierra and Japan were 14% and 7% respectively.
Religion
Freedom of religion is guaranteed by the Constitution's 12th Article but does not include the free exercise, as certain polities of religion are prohibited. Episcopal polities and all denominations that require an oath or creed to religious organizations is forbidden. Religious institutions or groups that promote the destruction of the state, socialism, or the party's control are prohibited from being organized. All religious institutions must be organized through a congregationalist polity.
The United Commonwealth has the world's second largest Christian population. During the 2020 Census, 58.9% of the population self identified as Christians; of these, Protestants accounted for 47.5%, of which 74.5% claimed to belong to a nondenominational church, and 16.9% of the population identified as Independent Catholics. Another 3.2% of the U.C adult population claimed a non-Christian religion. These included Judaism (2.4%), Islam (0.6%), Hinduism (0.1%) and Buddhism (0.1%). 37.1% of the Continental population reported in 2020 as self identifying as agnostic, athiest, nonreligious or as spiritual but not religious. During a 2017 survey, 89% of the respondents claimed they believed in a 'higher power'. Church attendance fell from 75% in 1996 to 47% in 2020 with much of the decline related to the number of Continentals who expressed no religious preference.
Race
The Constitution establishes the United Commonwealth as a multinational state, with every ethnic group and nationality being provided protections. It is a racially and ethnically diverse nation. In the most recent Continental Census, there are six official "peoples" categories (European-Continental, African-Continental, Indigenous-Continental, Asian-Continental, Biracial-Continentals and Pacific Islander-Continental).
As of 2020, European-Continental's make of the majority group, representing 64.8% of the people. African-Continentals, a designation that includes both descendants of slavery and the African and Caribbean diaspora, make up the the largest minority group with 19.3% of the population.
In 1926, the Continental Census eliminated usage of the words "race" and "ethnicity", and has since instead categorized regions of the world into a single "peoples". The two eliminated terms were abolished within the government and the party as an attempted to destroy the connotations of a racial hierarchy within the nation.
Although all groups are provided equal protection under the law, efforts have been made to provide reparations to the various indigenous groups and black descendants of slavery throughout the nation. Through border delamination six Continental Republics were created where only one recognized group may hold governmental power and must make up the majority of the workforce within any given cooperative. These Continental Republics include Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia, Quebec, Acadiana, Chickasaw Republic, Cherokee Republic and the Muscogee Republic.
Language
Health
The Commissariat for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported that the United Commonwealth had an average life expectancy at birth of 81.4 years in 2020, up 0.2 year from 2019. Since the 1990s the Continental life expectancy has risen. Suicide is major national public health issue, which has improved since 1994, when the suicide rate hovered at 18.3 per 100,000. Opioid distribution is highly regulated and citizens dying from druge overdoses is relatively low. Life expectancy, as of 2020, is highest among non-Hispanic whites and Asians, and lowest among blacks.
Since the 1980s the obesity rate has declined significantly from a high of 27% to the current rate of 8%. Obesity rates have dropped in comparison to other industrialized nations after a series of health reforms were untaken in 1989. Childhood obesity is regarded as a form of child abuse. Harmful risk factors that have plagued the Continental healthcare system have historically included poor diet, tobacco smoking, obesity, high blood pressure and high blood sugar. All these metrics have improved since the healthcare reforms as mentioned prior. Birth control is free and easily accessible to all women of all ages. Teenage pregnancy and abortion rates are some of the lowest in the western hemisphere.
Citizens within the United Commonwealth have access to a universal healthcare safety net through a national health insurance scheme. The Commissariat of Health and Welfare is the national department responsible for the operation and administration of healthcare services within the country. Primary care is available in nearly every county across the county, while facilities for acute care and tertiary care are based out of medium to large sized cities. Prescription drugs and intensive procedures are covered under the national health insurance program. Healthcare providers within the United Commonwealth utilize an electronic health record system accessible through a closed platform.
Education
Universal access to education is guaranteed within the constitution and ensures every citizen access to pre-kindergarten, primary school (1st through 8th grade) and secondary education (9th to 12th grade). Natasha Rosenberger, in 1921, became the first Secretary for Commissariat of Education for the Continentalist States. During the 1920s Continental authorities allocated a significant amount of resources to eliminating illiteracy across the country. Substantial efforts were taken in the South to increase literacy rates, while also pushing political education. Across the country, normal schools were nationalized and teachers were forced to undergo training in political education. In 1928, the Continental States National Normal School was established by the Continentalist Party as the training center for all education administrators. All educators were required by law in 1929 to be members of the Continentalist Party.
Beginning in the 1930s, social mobility increased dramatically as students were being admitted to university based on merit. University enrollment increased dramatically after the Great War, leading to the national government to intervene. University admissions were placed under the authority of the government in 1938 and entrance exams became increasingly difficult. The physical sciences, specifically engineering and mathematics, were placed at the forefront of education in 1949.
Education is compulsory and parents are forbidden from discontinuing a child's education. Entrance examinations are required to enter into university, which are considered highly selective. Union sponsored vocational school are accessible through independent entrance examinations, all of which have various standards and requirements. Rural and urban schools are provided through a base national taxation, Additional funding is provided through grants from the national and republic governments. Underperforming schools are provided grants while also undergoing audits and reorganization. Educators are required by the government to teach for 2 years at an underperforming school if selected.
Government and politics
The United Commonwealth is a federation of ideological tied continentalist states, operating as a representative democracy with both a civil and party component with the Continentalist Party being the sole political party. Through the civil and partisan political routes, the various departments and committees form a series of checks and balances that create a competitive political atmosphere and precedence. Legally, citizens are subject to two levels of government, the local republic government and the central government.
The local government has some level of control in regards to economic policy and has nearly complete control in regards to social policy. The central government has extensive control in setting economic development plans, which are established through four year economic plans, dictating taxes, infrastructure spending and production goals. Structure of the civil government is based on a series of committees with the most powerful civil body being the Central Congress. Members of the civil legislature are also members of the National Committee which acts as the supreme organ of the Continentalist Party. The National Committee is the precedent setting authority only meeting every four years. The Central Committee is comprised of five members who act as the expedient executive for the National Committee, directing the course of the Central Congress and public policy. The leadership of the Central Committee and the party is the Secretariat, who which acts as both head of government and head of state. Constitutionally the entirety of the party's Central Committee and National Committee are regarded as the head of government and state.
The Constitution establishes the United Commonwealth as a "fraternal union of Continentalist States bound in one supreme United Commonwealth", granting all powers to the working class which operates through {democratic institutions to bring about a socialist society as prescribed by Landonism. The United Commonwealth has been a single party since the conclusion of the Continental Revolutionary War. Prescribed by the Constitution it is necessary for all elected officials to swear allegiance to the ideology of the state and part.
Administrative divisions
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1. Chickasaw Republic
2. Choctaw Republic
3. Muscogee Republic
4. Cherokee Republic
Political parties
Supreme authority within the Continentalist Party is granted to the National Committee which is composed of 600 delegates from various cities, counties and influential locales. The National Committee selects every four years the Central Committee which acts as the expedient decision making body within the political apparatus of the country.
The Secretariat, the Chairman of the Continentalist Party, and the Central Commissioner of the Continentalist Party are guaranteed positions on the Central Committee. Within the last thirty years it has become more common within the party to delegate all these positions to the Secretariat, allowing for more lower level local party leaders to ascend to the Central Committee. After Great War II the pendulum of power slowly began to shift towards the National Committee who insisted on diversifying the Central Committee and providing the Secretariat with the additional posts of the Party Chairmen and Central Commissioner. This marked a shift within the party's adherence to democratic centralism which has lead to the National Committee to become more fractured in the late 20th century and the early 21st century.
The Continentalist Party has maintained political and economic dominance within the country through its appointments system and required membership to access public sector jobs and services. Although considered a merit system it requires those seeking positions within any level of the government to belong to the party, along with their children and spouses to be registered as Continentalists. All 1.6 million teachers, 300,000 postal workers and the 2 million members of the active and reserve component of the Armed Forces of the Continental States belong to the Continentalist Party. Some 30 million children within state schools are required to be enrolled within the youth wing of the governing political party known as the Continentalist Youth of America (ages 12-18) and the Young Mountaineers (5-12).
Although the Continentalist Party exerts nearly complete control over the economic and political control over both state and union bureaucracy, the various factions of the party participate in competitive politics among themselves. The various factions are dictated by law to belong to the Registered Sections of the Continentalist Party, pledging loyalty and fidelity to the ideas of Landonism and to openly support the Central Committee in their actions and decisions. This pledge does not include the National Committee or various local committees allowing for members to openly criticize one another in the public sphere. There are currently 4 registered sections, with the largest being the The Labor Front of the Continentalist Party. The Revolutionary Front of the Continentalist Party hold nearly a quarter of the delegations to the National Committee. The most recent addition to the registered section and smallest faction is the Stewards Caucus of the Continentalist Party.
Foreign relations
The Continental States has an extensive foreign relations policy objective that seeks to build and establish social democracies through Landonist polices and Continentalist inspired republics. Within the Conference of American States and NATO, it is considered an ideologically aggressive state with a conviction on par with that of the former derzhavist states of Russia and France. Nearly every country has established embassies within Chicago, with many maintaining consulates in Miami and Louisville. Nearly all nations host Continental diplomatic missions with the exception of Saudi Arabia and Bhutan. It maintains close relations with other states on the North American continent, albeit these relations are built upon a long process that has sought to establish peace among the Continental States and members of the Conference of American States. It is a member of the League of Nations, the G7, the G20, the Association of Caribbean States (OECS) and the Organization of American States (OAS). It is an observer of the Bolivarian Alliance for the Americas (ALBA), the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development (OECD) and the World Trade Organization.
The Continental States is one of the founding signatories to the Chattanooga Pact, the military cooperative component of the aligning members of the Organization of Mutual Economic Assistance and Development (OMEAD). Members of OMEAD and the Chattanooga Pact include Mexico, Nicaragua, the Union of Burma, Eritrea, Indonesia, Venezuela, Algeria, Guyana, Nepal, Tanzania, Barbados, Ecuador, Ethiopia and North Vietnam. It also belongs to the Continental Organization of North America States (CONAS), a collective defense pact with the Continental Republic of Tournesol.
While the United Commonwealth maintains mostly amicable relations with the nations of the European Community, since early 2016 it has distanced itself from the continent after the Continental States underwent pressure to take in refugees during the migrant crisis of 2015. With the elections of mostly centre-right governments throughout most of Europe, the Continentalist Party began to withdraw support from many of the socialist parties. It was supportive of the establishment of Poland-Lithuania as a free and independent republic although the two countries have since drifted in regards to cooperation. In Asia, the Continental States maintains close relations with North Vietnam, Burma and Cambodia.
In the Americas, diplomatic relations are typically seen from a unionist perspective, where the Continental States maintains de jure that the United Commonwealth was the rightful successor to the United States of America. The Continental States advocates and to establish the North American continent as a federation of Continental republics with Landonism as its central guiding ideology, a stance that has lead to its indefinite exclusion from the Conference of American States. Since the ascension of the Continentalist Party, the government of the Continental States has supported efforts to either politically or militarily install Landonist governments within Canada and Brazoria. It maintains close relations with many Central American states and left leaning republics in South America. Since the 1980s the United Provinces has held a combative stance towards the Continental States after a failed Landonist coup in 1979.
Since the end of the Cold War, the Continentalist States has attempted to mediate global conflicts through diplomatic resolutions and economic incentives. Its relations with Sierra continued to deteriorate throughout the 90s and the 21st century as the neoconservative movement within the country began to heavily favor interventionist policies. While the two nations had historically been at odds, relations improved significantly during and after Great War I, since the fall of communism relations have since returned to being tense. After the 1993 Gulf War, the Continental government began efforts to empower the the Ba'athist regimes throughout the region in order to deter Iranian, Saudi and Pacific aggression. It denounced Sierra during the 2004 invasion of Syria and its involvement in Iraq.
Government expenditure
Military
The Armed Forces of the United Commonwealth are subject to civilian control exercised by the Secretariat through the Commissioner (CCP). The Commissioner also serves as the Secretary of the Central Military Commission (CMCUC) which acts as a the formal parallel organization in the government. There are 3 components of the active military force, the Continental Army (CAUC), the Continental Navy (CNUC) and the Continental Air Force (CAFUC). The Continental Revolutionary Guard (CRG) is the reserve component of the armed forces and is under direct control by the Central Committee.
According to the Constitution, the Central Congress of the United Commonwealth is required to maintain the nation's military expenditure below 2.5% during times of peace and below 3.2% during times of heightened tensions. Currently the military budget stands at Ȼ364.3 billion dollars, ranking as the second largest military budget in the world (behind Sierra's $391.985 billion dollar budget and above China's $177.9 billion). Comprised of 719,000 active duty service members and 1,281,000 reserve members it is the world's 4th largest military.
The United Commonwealth is one of the seven recognized nuclear powers, processing a three-pronged military force known as a nuclear triad. It has maintained a no first use policy since 1959 and is a signatory of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons. Engaged in affairs across the world, the Armed Forces of the United Commonwealth are engaged in global disaster relief, economic construction, peacebuilding, peacemaking and peace enforcement. Since the conclusion of the Second Great War the United Commonwealth has maintained a series of military assets across the world.
Economy
| Economic indicators | ||
|---|---|---|
| Nominal GDP | Ȼ$13.8 trillion (Q4 2019) | |
| Real GDP growth | 2.2% (December 2019) | |
| CPI inflation | 2.5% (December 2019) | |
| Employment-to-population ratio | 65% (April 2018) | |
| Unemployment | 4.3% (December 2019) | |
| Labor force participation rate | 76% (December 2019) | |
| Total public debt | $10.5 trillion (74.1% of GDP) (Q4 2019) | |
| Household net worth | $8.355 trillion (Q4 2017) | |
The United Commonwealth has the world's second-largest economy in terms of nominal GDP, totaling approximately Ȼ$13.8 trillion dollars as of 2019. In terms of purchasing power parity (PPP GDP), the United Commonwealth ranks second behind China. From 1975 to 2008, the Continental compounded annual GDP growth was 2.8%, compared to the 3.2% weighted average for North American nations belonging to the Conference of American States. The nation ranks fifteenth in the world in nominal GDP per capita, with citizens making an average of Ȼ$55,000 and twelfth in the world in GDP per capita at PPP. The Continental Dollar is the reserve currency throughout the Organization of Mutual Economic Assistance and Development, which encompasses fifteen nations.
The Continental States is the world's second-largest exporter and third-largest importer of goods. Its major trading partners include Canada, Sierra, Brazoria. Throughout the 2010s, petroleum was the most imported commodity, while foodstuff and transportation equipment made up the country's largest export. Because of the political nature of the country and the demand by workers for self-management, multinational corporations either avoid employing Continental labor or enter the market because of its production efficiency.
In 2019, the private sector was estimated to constitute 87.5% of the economy, with the central government and its commissariats accounting for 5.5% and local government accounting for the remaining 7%. Considered a postindustrial economy with the service sector constituting 63% of the GDP, the Continental States still remains an industrial power, producing a large portion of the worlds steel, automobiles, ships and electronics. The United Commonwealth is the world's top producer of corn, soybeans, wheat and third largest producer of cotton.
Consumer spending is considered low within the United Commonwealth compared to other Western nations although it made up nearly 59% of the Continental economy. In 2019, the Continental labor force consisted of 149.1 million people. 89% of the workforce is unionized, compared to 30% in the European Union, and 24% in the Pacific States and 9% in Brazoria. During the 2008 Recession, the Continental economy lost two million manufacturing jobs. Only 1.2 million of those manufacturing jobs returned by 2018, although the industrial sector grew exponentially with the government's sponsorship of automation replacing a majority of the mechanical tasks. The Continental States ranks behind Korea and Singapore in industrial robots per capita, for every ten thousand workers there are 486 autonomous machines. These machines are controlled by Continental Electric, a state-owned enterprise, which provides nearly all of its profits to the benefit of the state and pensioners of the labor unions.
Depending on the worker-cooperative and labor union, the minimum annual leave with pay varies, although the average ranges between 16-20 days. All workers outside the realm of emergency services are guaranteed paid leave on five days out of the years. Paid family leave is a near universal right among the worker-cooperatives and women who belong to a a family initiated into the Registry of Valiant Labor are granted a stipend for their childbearing from the central government. The Labor Registry is considered the highest honor among the working-class and has been a source for the nation's high workforce productivity, to which the United Commonwealth ranks 4th in the world, behind Sierra, Luxembourg and Norway. Continental workers rank sixth in productivity per hour, behind Brazoria and the Netherlands. Workers in the United Commonwealth are documented as to having the highest rates of job satisfaction, with job control and positive work atmospheres being the main contributors. This has generated a healthy work–life balance with many Continentals working an eight-hour day. This eight-hour work day is not based on a hourly wage, which the Continentalist Party considers a form of wage slavery, it is instead based on a formula of salaried wage and dividends from workplace profits.
Utilizing a mixed-economy, the specific model practiced within the United Commonwealth is characterized as a form of syndicalism paired with a market socialist economy that holds an ideological alignment to the principles of Landonist economic theory. Nearly 85% of all industries within the United Commonwealth are categorized as being managed by labor, where workers belong to their respective labor unions and participate in the direction of their respected industries. This dispersed social ownership has built a competitive market, where worker-collectives and labor unions seek to produce higher quality goods at an effective rate. Although the Continental government has pushed for the transition from a for-profit system to a production for use system, the various worker collectives have overwhelming continued to practice production models that place profiteering at the heart of production. Continental economists state that this model of profiteering is necessary in a globalized system of capitalism.
Science and technology
The United Commonwealth throughout the 20th and 21st centuries has been a technological leader in innovation and exploration. It pioneer the methods of interchangeable parts as a means to develop streamlined production lines, establishing the nation at the heart of the machine tool industry. Sophisticated assembly lines were deemed to be essentially in generating the amount of surplus necessary to propel the ideological principle of freedom of want. Continental factories were among the first factories to be electrified, spearheading the development of mass production that has generated a relative amount of excess goods. This production scheme has contributed to the United Commonwealth's trade surplus, exporting an array of high quality goods to the world.
American inventors such as Alexander Graham Bell, Henry Ford and Thomas Edison spurred the development of many modern technological innovations. In 1922, the Continental Telephone and Telegraph Cooperative (CT&T) was established through the government acquisition of Bell's corporation. After the acquisition, it was distributed among its various workers and turned into its modern identity seen today. Initially condemned by Alexander Bell, the productivity of his formerly employed scientists excelled in innovation, these criticism subsided prior to his death. Workers belonging to the Ford Motor Company, after collectivizing their workplace maintained Henry Ford's status as the cooperative's leader after settlements were made between management and labor. This agreement ended in 1925 after the company's division for innovation and production saw his position as redundant. Since then, the various artists and engineers who have shaped the course of the automobile have been recognized as the true developers of the Continental automobile. Edison's General Electric in 1923 was transformed into Continental Electric, one of the largest industrial cooperatives in the United Commonwealth. The company has been central to developing some of the worlds most durable incandescent light bulbs and was responsible for the development of the transistor in the 1950s which pushed the nation to the forefront of the global electronics market.
The United Commonwealth has been a leader in nuclear technology and operates the worlds largest array of nuclear facilities in the world. In 1942 developed the worlds first world's first artificial nuclear reactor, known as Chicago Pile-1. Responsible for the majority of exported nuclear reactors, studies conducted by the International Atomic Energy Agency claim that these reactors around the worlds have reduced carbon emissions by 4,293 million metric tons each year. Recent developments in the field of nuclear technology, include the world's first sodium-cooled fast breeder reactor. Scientists at Purdue University have recently constructed the Continental Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor, a tokamak nuclear fusion reactor that is set to be fully operational by 2032. Chicago is the world capital for nuclear medicine and was the origin site for medical radiography, spawning the medical community's utilization of radioactive tracers and radiation therapy. It is the largest exporter of PET and Scintigraphy machines in the world. In 1944 and 1945 it raced to develop develop nuclear weapons against Brazoria and the Pacific States, only to have preformed a successful detonation three months after the Pacific Trinity test.
During Great War II and the Cold War, the United Commonwealth rapidly excelled in the fields of rocketry, materials science and aeronautics. It was the second nation to develop the intercontinental ballistic missile and was the first nation to deploy an artificial satellite, the Wabash Cannonball-1. These achievements ultimately pushed the nations of CAS and the EC into a Space Race. It was the second nation to achieve human spaceflight and in 1969 the space mission Odyssey 11 achieved the first manned moon landing. In 1977 it achieved mankind's first lunar settlement, known as the Continental Lunar Laboratory, which has hosted the International Lunar Program since 1985, where astronauts of the Brazorian Commission for Space Exploration (CSE) and the Pacific Pacific Aeronautics and Aerospace Agency (R3A), along with one rotating nation, live alongside Continental cosmonauts. The Commissariat for Cosmological Exploration and Administration (CCEA) currently operates at a budget of $43.2 billion dollars, one of the largest space expenditures on the planet. Tts signature rocket known as the Sea Dragon is a rocket deployed at sea has been at the heart of the Continental space program since its inspection, this is due in part because of its efficient tonnage capacity. Announced in 2012, the CCEA declared that a mission to place the first man on the planet Mars would be completed by 2020. In 1978 the Continetal Air Force launched the satellite based radionavigation system known as the Global Positioning System (GPS). It is the largest and most comprehensive global navigation satellite systems currently operated.
Infrastructure
Transportation
The United Commonwealth processes an extensive rail and freeway system, which has been key to connecting the large country economically. Historically, the United Commonwealth depended heavily upon rail to transport both freight and passengers, this transitioned away in the mid 20th century, with the extensive growth of the Continental Thoroughfares, the colloquial term for all controlled-access highways in the country. The development of thoroughfares came to influence the growth of Continental cities, creating large urban sprawls that ultimately caused a backlash in the late 20th century. The Central Government enacted dirigist policies that developed the state owned corporation known as the Continental Rail Authority, which continues to provide some 5.3 billion passengers with medium to long distance intercity rail service. Although having high rail usage, most citizens still hold driver's licenses, which are necessary to operate a vehicle within the country.
Within cities, light-rail, buses and subway system are readily available, with the Chicago Transit Authority being the largest mass transit operator in North America, servicing around 2.6 billion patrons annually. Some cities, outside of the Midwest, most notably in the South, city transit usage is considerably low and citizens remain dependent on automobiles. The city of Philadelphia has the second largest transit system, and the former United State's capital Washington the third largest. In 2018, the elevated rapid transit of Louisville was completed, which now ranks one of the most technologically advanced systems in the world. Several other cities, such as Pittsburgh and Charleston experienced extensive growth in their transit systems after the Appalachian Urbanization Effort was completed in 2015.
The transportation of freight is carried primarily by barges, or by freight trains, which are controlled by private corporations. Freight rails are independent from passenger lines, and independently compete to ship goods, with Norfolk Southern Railway, CSX Transpiration being the two largest freight companies in the nation. The Ohio River and the Mississippi River carry the most freight of any river in the world, transporting goods to the largest port in the world, the Port of South Louisiana. Around 7,000 vessels pass through the Port of New Orleans, the primary exit of domestically produced goods. Some of the largest storage of corn, soy, wheat, steel, rubber, coffee, fruits and vegetables exist between the ports of South Louisiana and New Orleans. Also concentrated between the two ports is the Continental Strategic Petroleum Reserve, which holds the largest emergency supply of oil in the world, with a capacity of 727 million barrels. The Saint Lawrence is also a major shipping route for Continental ships and barges. Controlling the entry way into the Great Lakes the United Commonwealth has utilized the waterways as a means of exerting political influence. Since the established of the socialist governments of Ontario and Quebec only vessels carrying goods destined for Continental and eastern Canadian ports are allowed entry into the Great Lakes.
Energy
Culture
Culture in the United Commonwealth is a product of Western culture with influencing elements from African and Native American traditions. Continental culture is distinguishable from other Anglo-American nations, possessing various unique dialects, music genres, art, social habits, cuisines and folklore. Because of the nation's multicultural makeup, the nation has been characterized as both a melting pot and an ethnic salad bowl. Central to the enduring Landonist thought, the Continentalist government supports the nation's ethnic and linguistic diversity in its current form, however, its party's manifest states that its ultimate ideological goal is to eventually dissolve the barriers associated with race, class and gender. In the aftermath of the Continental Revolutionary War, the Continental Republics were established through a series of boundary delimitation efforts that effectively segregated the various races and ethnicities of the former United States. The delimitation in the 1921 generated a ethnocentric view among the various communities of the United Commonwealth which has persisted to this day. Population transfers caused a complete restructuring of the Continental populace, dramatically changing the composition and culture of the various regions. With ethnic groups segregated by several miles apart from one another, the Continentalist government promoted intercultural competence within these monoculture communities in an attempt to heal racial wounds between European-Americans and former slaves and their descendants. Deprived of a shared religious tradition and common ethnic background, the ideology of Landonism-Continentalism was established, and today remains the core principle of the Continental national identity.
Food
Continental cuisine comprises a variety of beverages, foods, soups and culinary contributions in the United Commonwealth which has derived from several European, African and Indigenous gastronomical practices. Prior to 1917, the United States developed a variety of regional cuisines which continue to hold significance, including, Pennsylvania Dutch, Cajun, Acadian, Louisiana Creole, Cuban, and Québécois cuisines. Some major cities including Chicago, New York City, Philadelphia and Boston have their own distinct specialty cuisines and are internationally renowned for their prominent dishes. Culturally important dishes originating from these cities that are recognized globally include: the New York style pizza, eggs Benedict, Philly cheesesteak, Chicago style pizza and the Chicago style hot dog. Southern cusine is also popular cuisine, with fried chicken, biscuits and gravy and hushpuppies being popular dishes of the region.
Music
Cinema
Sports
American football, baseball and basketball are the most populat spectator sports in the United Commonwealth. The National Basketball Association of Player (NBAP) has the highest average attendance of any sports league in the country and is a multitiered league that incorporates local sports clubs, collegiate clubs and professional clubs. Collegiate athletics are followed closely by millions of viewers; the College Football Playoff and NCAA Tournament both draw nearly 18 million viewers every year. Baseball has has historically been regarded as the American national sport since the late 19th century. After the Continental Revolutionary War, Major League Baseball was disbanded as it was seen exploitative and undemocratic and was reformed into the Continental Baseball League (CBL). In 1929 the Locals Competitive Baseball League (LCBL) was established as an league for union sponsored teams.
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