Respecting your elders to me means helping the elderly cross the street, and to engage in conversations with them so that they don’t feel lonely for example.

It doesn’t mean adopting their worldview or respecting it. I understand that the phrase meant different things in different eras (obey the patriarch, do not talk back to those older than you, etc.) but we’re not exactly Romans or Confucians here so there’s no need to follow their lead.

Don’t. Managing to stay alive long enough doesn’t make you smart or a better person. I’ve met plenty of old people who say horrific stuff about black people, gay people, trans people, victims of SA and every other underprivileged group of people. I know this sounds like an ideological “bootstraps” argument, but seriously after 60+ years if you are genuinely hateful, then fuck you. That being said, I generally treat every stranger pretty kind, old people included.

Anyone that’s an asshole shouldn’t be respected.

It’s just a guideline. How you apply it is up to you

In my personal experience, whenever someone has told me this, it’s always been in the context of justifying their selfish behavior/ even abusive behavior. As others said, apply it how you see fit 🧘‍♂️.

Maybe you can respect the fact that they have a lot of life exprerience, but shit on what they’ve done with all that life experience.