Planet Green's Greensburg: Best Show on TV

For most, reality television is little more than an opportunity for people who otherwise would have no chance at fame to enjoy their fifteen minutes, typically at the cost of our brain cells as we are forced to watch human pettiness at its worst.

Not so in the case of Discovery Channel and Leonardo DiCaprio's Greensburg, an ongoing documentary series concerning the tenacity of a small town in Kansas as it struggles to reorganize and completely reinvent itself after the EF 5 tornado that virtually obliterated the town from the face of the earth.

As a storm chaser, I have seen a lot in the way of destruction. I have watched as people clawed their way out of a broken home, shock written all over their face as they attempt to assimilate what has just happened to them. But the real story isn't in those first critical moments. It actually comes later, as that same person struggles to rebuild a life that has been taken severely off course by something beyond their control. Greensburg does an excellent job of documenting this process, as it is seen through the eyes of the residents of this small but tough town.

We've long been aware of the fact that people who live in the plains are survivors. We are accustomed to building a cooperation of sorts with the environment around us through agriculture and the understanding that this planet and it's natural forces have the ability to dominate us. Greensburg shows this spirit nicely. The people are working as a community. Yes, there is disagreement. There is confusion. There are questions as to whether they are making the right choices. But slowly, they are working together to help each other. I love the simple values so often portrayed on this show, as it reminds me of my own youth, growing up in a very similar small town. It almost makes me want to move there myself.

I am also taking away a better understanding of what confronts town after town after similar incidents leave them reeling each spring. What exactly do you do after you are stripped of every resource from which you have ever benefited? Where do you start? Who do you call? Who is trustworthy and who isn't? How are you going to regain some sense of normalcy again? This tells me there is a need for some sort of improved system for dealing with the aftermath of tornadoes in the plains. FEMA does what it can, and bridges the gap in the lives of these folks by providing temporary shelter. But it cannot deal with the full scope of a disaster, and really teach people what works and what does not when it comes to re-creating a working infrastructure. It would be wonderful to have someone who can walk people through the process, show them the steps it will take and answer their questions as time goes on. While the story of Greensburg, Kansas is unique and tragic, it is not without parallel. It may not be the case that an entire town is lost every year, but if a person were to add together all of those lives affected by severe weather each spring, the list would be long and staggering. There are so many other towns, other lives, other farmers. They all have stories.

I'm looking forward to the remaining episodes of Greensburg, simply because it has such a positive message. There is hope after disaster.