I've sniped and been sniped a couple of times. Being the victor or the loser can change your perspective on it in an instant.
More recently, I've started bidding earlier. I've found that bringing the price up earlier (not a bidding war, by any means - just putting in a single bid) can discourage later sniping. I think the appeal for sniping is that you can nab something quickly for cheap. If it ain't especially cheap by the end, that's the end of the snipe appeal.
The snipe frenzy at the end of an auction can drive the price way way way up, far more than earlier bidding can.
There's actually been psychological research into similar behavior - in an experiment, participants bid tens of dollars (if not more - don't remember exact amount) on a single one dollar bill.
