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A 100th meridian forms a natural border, separating the policed, civilised eastern side of the United States from the wild west deserts which hark back to the days of the Indians and pioneers.
Today this ancient road, running from Canada to Mexico, no longer carries the nostalgic aura of romantic passion it used to. Its numerous regions and states, characterised by the wide-open, endless plains of North Dakota, Indian reservations in the south, isolated farmsteads of Nebraska, panoramic vistas where telephone wires and electric poles provide the only signs of humanity to the winding Oklahoma river that breaks the monotony of Texan cattle ranches once epitomised the land of plenty that form the very backbone of the United States.
In one of these states the passer-by comes across a billboard announcing "The Bible [is the] Greatest Book Ever Written" - the same town where God watches over devoted patriots and their dead.
A visit to the Sitting Bull Memorial, Mount Rushmore, Buffalo Bill homeland, and Texas town of Liberal (birthplace of the little girl Dorothy from the "Wizard of Oz" movie) are indeed proof that the American Dream and its symbols never die.
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