Or maybe it's you the one who can't read it properly? Else explain to me what he meant by this: "PHP made it very easy for a lot of people to do something with the web, something that otherwise they might not have been able to do"

  a lot of people != all php users.

Actually

  a lot of people != the majority of php users.

You're reading a bit too much in what OP wrote. I have beern an avid php programmer several years ago, and still like it very much by the way.