There are a lot of people involved in aspects of Kryptos aside from the obvious of Jim Sanborn. What about trying to contact these other guys?
Let’s see…
Edward Scheidt, then retiring Chairman of the CIA Cryptographic Center, now founder of TecSec
William Webster, then DCI, now Chairman of the Homeland Security Advisory Council
Jim Gillogly, then 1st civilian to break K1-3, now writer and editor
David Stein, then CIA analyst, now ?
Ken Miller, then NSA employee, now ?
Dennis McDaniels, then NSA employee, now ?
How about James Sanborn’s assistants during the Kryptos creation-installation period?
I think his girlfriend is off-limits unless they ever break up for some reason. Although it might be interesting to formulate some basic questions they could answer together just to show their perspective as a couple with a secret that draws national interest.
Anyone else who might be responsive to a carefully worded letter of Kryptos-related questions?
Respectfully, I don’t like this approach. Quoting Sanborn to John Wilson regarding John’s proposed K4 solution at http://austininc.com/SciRealm/KryptosPart4.html, “This is not the way.”
Part of what makes researching Kryptos so fascinating is the fact that it is meant to be solved on its own, in spite of its grim reluctance to give up its secrets so far. It’d be a shame if it fell apart due to some hint or accidental slip from someone who knows more than a solver is supposed to. I don’t want any clues of this sort.
Fair enough. I would counter with the fact that it was meant to be solved on its own but the final form is not what was originally intended. This is opinion however, I have no proof.
I can tell you for a fact that I would have no reasonable expectation that Ed Scheidt or Jim Sanborn would reveal too much. I also have no reasonable expectation they would answer any letter from me. I’m not sure I’ll be able to find the other guys. I also plan on phrasing and forming my questions very carefully.
There is a part of me that wishes it would be so simple to find out by any means available.
There is the more rational part of me that knows that any success from this will merely fill in the background around a piece of art that is very interesting. In contrast to John Wilson, I’ll try to be more careful in my approach and will keep the perspective that this may not work and may not be the best way to solve Kryptos. I’d like to give it a shot though and would appreciate any feedback/proofreading/editorializing/criticisms you and any others may be able to provide.