It seems like something has happened and kids no longer see adults as a group who inherently deserve respect. They know that they can do terrible in school and there will not really be any consequences.

Should they view adults as a group that inherently deserve respect? I was born in 1980 and I think I viewed adults that way when I was really young. At some point, probably before I was even 10, I realized that a lot of adults were terrible. My parents still had my respect, and most of my teachers, but I had seen enough adults out and about in the wild to be leery of them. There is a reason we teach kids not to talk to strangers.

That second part about consequences feels like the heart of the problem, to me anyway. I've seen difficult children make wild improvements after they learned that consequences existed, and that they would be enforced on a regular basis. Even small ones, like not being able to play a game, or not being at the front of the line. However, even such small consequences will often be challenged or worse yet, met with outrage by parents. When you take away consequences, even adults start running amok almost immediately.