EBAY - a den of thieves!

The online marketplace Ebay was established with the noble goal of allowing individuals to sell or buy items in an honest fashion.
Unfortunately, Ebay is infested with thieves. I would further argue that some of Ebay's policies are promoting and supporting the actions of thieves.
How do I know this? I myself have been a victim.
My first encounter with nefarious individuals on Ebay came when I was attempting to sell a cellular phone. Being a novice seller, I did not know the nuances that would allow blocking of certain bidders (for example, foreign purchasers if I didn't want to ship overseas, or bidders with low approval numbers). My phone auction was won by a scam artist, whose account was soon closed by Ebay after the auction completed. I was forced to fill out additional paperwork and wait several days before re-posting my item for sale.
My most recent encounter with an Ebay scammer is more horrible. I was looking for a MacBook Pro laptop. I was given a "second chance" offer by a seller in the UK, with the Ebay ID bigterry23. Ebay allowed this seller to list his item without any payment or shipping info. This seller than sent a "phishing" type email from "Ebay Buyer Protection Service" detailing a supposed protected payment method through Western Union money transfer.
Sad to say, I fell for it. I should have known better, but these guys are sophisticated. They put up an Ebay ID with 12 positive ratings, and sent a payment invoice that looked like a legitimate Ebay mail. If any Gadfly readers has any information on the following individual, I would encourage you to bring him to justice: Terri Manducav, 11 Elvaston Place, London, SW7 5QG, email manduc@europe.com
Am I angry? You bet. Whom do I blame - lots of parties. Myself, of course, the bastard thief, and also Ebay. Why can't Ebay clean its house? Why can't Ebay have a system of forcing sellers to detail payment and shipping information with each item placed on auction? Why can't Ebay crack down on phishing scams, and educate its buyers and sellers about potential scams. There should be a front and center page on Ebay dedicated to scams and how to avoid them as a buyer or seller.
Until Ebay cleans house, I will be avoiding doing any further business in a marketplace that has become a den of thieves.