Columbia is a militantly theocratic and fascist society that idolized American exceptionalism. Religion and government were one and the same, and devotion to the city and its prophet was required of its citizens. This was based upon the teachings of Father Comstock as a divine prophetic figure, as well as interpretations of the Founding Fathers of Thomas Jefferson, George Washington, and Benjamin Franklin, whom Columbian belief said were appointed by the Archangel Columbia to "rise America above all other nations" in law, technology, and power. The belief that Comstock was chosen to complete and succeed the Founding Fathers' was widespread. His word was law, though some form of elected officials did exist in the city. Images of him, his wife, child, and the Founders, alongside angels, are found all over Columbia, which is presented as a heavenly place, despite its oppressive and militant nature. Columbia's religiosity appears like a form of protestant Christianity that would have risen during that era due to the Great Awakening, but little resembles actual Christianity. Columbia's prevailing religious ideology was very much a personality cult that is typical of despotic regimes. Columbia floats above the North American continent and is comprised of neoclassical buildings similar to those present within the "White City" of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. The design relies heavily upon Neoclassical and colonial American influences for its architecture. While reactors, propellers and balloons are present throughout the city, its ability to float is due to quantum levitation which allows objects to be suspended indefinitely. The city is also designed with "rain-catchers" that collect water from precipitation in the clouds to keep the vegetation and populace supplied with water. Other technological wonders such as complex automatons, advanced weapons, recording devices, and even crude cybernetics were developed in Columbia. Columbia was designed with docking stations and propulsion devices to allow sections of it to move about independently. Columbia was constructed for long distance travel, allowing for national and international tours, with a regular route across the United States. These routes featured periodic stops near major cities, connecting to relay stations which contain hidden transport rockets which grant passage to Columbia via coded signal. Columbia's internal means of transportation include zeppelins, cargo barges, hovercrafts, gondolas, and Sky-Lines. Bridges are also automated to connect with different moving portions of the city at various stations, scheduled like any other transportation system. The U.S. government intended Columbia to be a showcase of American Exceptionalism. Through tours across various countries and lands, America would be capable of spreading its vision of the future and the American ideal to others. Through Rosalind Lutece's discovery of the "Lutece Particle", which held atoms at a fixed position and support by Zachary Hale Comstock, a charismatic American religious figure, the city of Columbia was created and presented at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. The city was launched to great fanfare and was later dispatched to distant shores. What began as an endeavor of achievement and hope went horribly wrong for the American Government. In 1901, during the Boxer Rebellion where American hostages had been taken, Columbian Forces intervened without orders from the U.S. Government and destroyed the city of Peking. The destruction of the city caused the death of untold Chinese civilians and demonstrated the danger that Columbia posed to the rest of the world. When the floating city was revealed to be heavily armed and to have had acted on its own, a rift emerged between leadership in Columbia and Washington, resulting in the floating city being recalled to American shores. In response, on July 6th, 1902, Columbia seceded from the Union and the following year disappeared into the clouds. Comstock now had complete control over the city and its people who rallied to his beliefs and set to creating his ideal society. This emerging utopia had its flaws, though they were not seen as problems by its leadership. Comstock and his regime, The Founders, believed that Columbia embodied the true society envisioned by the Founding Fathers of the United States, where white Anglo-Saxons ruled over the world and that their country served a higher purpose in "civilizing" through military might and propagating their particular brand of religion. To many Columbians, America had turned away from its divine purpose, having abandoned slavery, religion, militarism, and racial supremacy. America and the rest of the world below were viewed with contempt, described as "the Sodom Below," a sinful and chaotic world which only deserved to be destroyed. Columbia in comparison was referred to as "Another Ark, for Another Time" by its citizens, meaning the city was the only source of goodness and order, and once Columbia destroyed the rest of the world, everything could restart pure and anew under the city's absolute rule. Due to Comstock's dogma, Columbians had a very narrow perspective of American history; President Abraham Lincoln was labeled "The Apostate" by Columbia for ending slavery. His killer, John Wilkes Booth, was revered as a saint. The Columbian perspective of the Civil War is that of a demonic Lincoln leading a barbarous horde against the saintly Confederate forces under a deified George Washington, underscoring Columbian beliefs about racial slavery, as well as the anarchistic nature of the "false" America. With the city free from the United States' anti-slavery and workers' safety laws, institutionalized racism and elitism were widespread and legally enforced in Columbia. Anglo-Saxon supremacy was widely asserted by the upper classes, matched with poor treatment of the immigrant working class. There was constant paranoia over "the foreign horde" and "anarchists" due to the racial beliefs of the time, causing Columbian xenophobia and militarism. People of "minority races", such as Africans, Native Americans, Asians, Jews, and Irish, were regularly subjugated in Columbia, with many working in Finkton to power Columbia's industry. This was under the guise of employment, while some (such as eventual Vox Populi leader Daisy Fitzroy) were brought in by force to serve as slaves or indentured servants. The more privileged classes lead more leisurely lives. This all was justified by some with the belief that the minorities had "risen above their station", and that their toil was a just form of penance. Others simply saw it as a source of cheap, expendable labor. As a result of this separation, minorities were largely relegated to menial labor with no opportunity for upward mobility, and asking for improvements would likely result in being attacked by the City Police, or worse. The hard labor workforce at Fink Manufacturing (well-known for mistreating its workers) was chiefly composed of the city's minority population and was closely supervised and controlled by heavily-armed Police Officers. The majority of Columbia's working class lived in Finkton's shabby, crime-ridden, and diseased slums, a stark contrast to the clean, stately neighborhoods of the upper classes. Those few who worked in areas where The Founders dominated were expected to be servile to their betters while dealing with inhumane working and living conditions. The rare few that worked in the homes of the elite might enjoy slightly better lives depending on their owner's generosity. Such policies are widely accepted by the majority of the upper and middle class. To them, this hierarchy was heaven-born and divinely ordained. Some exceptions existed, with a few progressives operating in secret, who published rebellious material demanding equality, and who provided safe lodgings for escaped workers. "Protecting Our Race" was an official maxim of Columbia's Police, and any attempts of race mixing were illegal; public stoning of interracial couples was a common diversion during important celebrations. Any attempts to promote egalitarianism lead to imprisonment, torture, or "re-education". Torture and murder of minorities is ignored by the Founders, as well as the Columbian police authorities, if not outright encouraged. Control was also enforced covertly and brutally by a splinter group of The Founders, the Fraternal Order of the Raven, which doubled as an assassination group and Special-Operations force who regularly lynched, attacked, and kidnapped those who threatened Comstock's ideals. Their special mission was seeking vengeance for the murder of Lady Comstock. Businesses: Fink Manufacturing was the largest business in Columbia, as well as its largest employer and manufacturer. Due to a high demand for Vigors in Columbia, Fink Manufacturing bottled and distributed Vigors produced by independent, contracted businesses, such as Marlowe for Murder of Crows. The work floor at Fink Manufacturing showed its dominance in various markets—one floor, for example, was devoted to Gun Automatons, while the one above focused on children's toys. Smaller businesses produced various items for the people of Columbia, the Founders, and the Vox. However, most of these companies were quickly bought out by Fink's cruel business empire, leaving him the sole distributor for goods in the city. There were some exceptions, such as the Duke & Dimwit Company, which produced propaganda pieces via books, toys, and machines to indoctrinate Columbia's children into its ideals. Despite these business opportunities, 50% of every Silver Eagle earned went directly to Comstock, which deeply affected the laborers of Columbia. Furthermore, Fink's price gouging and heavy-handed exploitation of his workers forced them into poverty, frequently leading to starvation and disease. This, in turn, further exacerbated the rise of the Vox Populi.