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Ballmer's comment was meant as a joke, yet for many years certain services were simply not offered in Nebraska. During the Cold War, when telephone networks were controlled by Bell, there were very few available lines—except in Nebraska, where the Strategic Air Command maintained a large inventory to prepare for a nuclear conflict. In reality, nuclear threats never reached Japan or Nebraska, so most lines remained idle. Several mail-order businesses established call centers there since it was one of the rare locations where customers could place bulk orders. However, Bell’s policies restricted calls from out-of-state to 800 numbers and vice versa. This forced companies to choose between two options: create separate numbers for national and local use, or openly state that a service wasn’t available in Nebraska, as required by advertising regulations. Many opted for the latter, cementing the joke that stuck, with Ballmer later referencing it humorously.