Here’s a suggestion for the movers and shakers of Albert Lea: Let’s get an automobile manufacturer to build a plant right here in our fair city of lakes.

Three weeks ago Honda announced it would build its sixth North American auto plant in Greensburg, Ind., a city of 10,500 people known for a tree that grows atop its clock tower. The Honda plant had been projected to employ about 750 workers, but when the announcement came down, Honda upped the size to, oh, 4,000. They will make Civics.

Nanjing Automobile Corp. purchased the famous MG brand from a company in the United Kingdom and last week announced plans to build MG sports cars in Ardmore, Okla, and locate its North American headquarters in Oklahoma City. Ardmore has 23,700 people and touts its location on Interstate 35 between Dallas and Oklahoma City with the slogan &8220;Dallas is coming our way.&8221;

A Toyota plant is on its way for San Antonio, Texas, and a Subaru plant is coming to Indiana.

Does it matter to the man who cashes his paycheck and puts bread on his family’s table whether the money comes from Detroit or Tokyo? Made in America is what matters. The borders of the world are dissolving. We can either cash in or get left behind.

We can’t win if we don’t play.

How do we get our foot in the door? How do we let auto manufacturers know the Albert Lea, Minnesota &045; at the intersection of two major freeways, with its strong Midwestern work ethic, a beautiful city of parks and lakes, with people friendly to a fault and with space to build &045;&160;is the perfect place to locate an auto manufacturing plant?

We don’t know. But as a community, let’s look into it. Let’s start today.