I was going to start using BTC-e but these kind of threads scare me

Which is the best exchange at the moment?
depending on where you live
but coinbase, bitstamp, kraken, bitcoin.de... Those ones I would trust
Of course that are the legal ones, where you need to prove your identity and address and stuff but it's totally worth it! Don't use btc-e for deposits/withdrawals of fiat money (if a transaction got stuck you have a problem), trading with cryptocurrencies is fine i guess but never let them there but I think that counts for every exchange
always use your own wallet