vi and encrypted files

[utzoo!decvax!decwrl!sun!megatest!fortune!hpda!hplabs!hao!csu-cs!bentson]

I just discoverd the following problem with vi:

When I wish to format or sort part of an encryped file from within vi, I
would like to be able to use the "!}" command to invoke the appropriate
utility.  Unfortunatly, the text sent to the utility is encrypted and
the returned text scrambled.  Is there any way to override this
protective feature of vi? (No, I don't want to decrypt the file before
starting vi!)

Randy Bentson
Colo State U - Comp Sci
csu-cs!bentson
303/491-7016