title: With "magic quotes" disabled, why does PHP/WordPress continue to auto-escape my POST data?
body: <p>It's a simple question with a strangely elusive answer.</p>
  
  <p><code>get_magic_quotes_gpc()</code> reports 0.  I repeat, magic quotes are off.  Magic quotes appear to have been disabled in <code>php.ini</code> (not at runtime).</p>
  
  <p>Nevertheless, all POST data including single quotes (') is escaped when accessed in PHP.  What could be causing this?</p>
  
  <hr>
  
  <p>While preparing a test case, I discovered the general origin of the problem.  We're bootstrapping WordPress as our application integrates with a WordPress multisite installation. When I disable the WordPress bootstrapping, the auto-escaping is disabled. Where may WordPress' auto-escape code be located?</p>