Where did the idea "Respect is earned" come from?

I hate that word, I am not even sure what it means, except that it is a s*** word, and people use it when they cannot describe what they are really trying to say, so you will back off. It was a word for kings and things of that nature, now everyone wants respect, because their old or young, or whatever reason, and I don't know what it means, maybe the word can just go away?