They didn't have stovetops. But they did have heat. If your ancestors stuck their hands in fire and _didn't_ quickly pull it back, they would lose that hand.
It's the heat that triggers the instinct, not the stovetop. Which is why you can touch a cold stovetop without instinctively pulling back.
Ah - apologies for the misunderstanding. But yes, this is definitely why Poe's Law exists.
@ccc i appreciate the outreach, but this was definitely the joke. poe's law, though