In a real world of webs applications and jobs for the net, macros are a dream for another universe. Php people don't dream, they step by step are making what macros can't do: expanding their universe. Joomla! they say.
no the just really GROW the language. Some new features somewhere else that they don't understand just trick it somehow in there. convert it to string and back or just stuff everything in some global variable or something. If it breaks you can just make a ugly fix on it with the next version.