What is fair in tax land?

Households earning more than $1 million a year fork over, on average, about 29 percent of their income to the Tax Man; those earning between $50,000 and $75,000 pay just 15 percent.
By the way, the seven-figure-plus crowd, which included just 236,000 taxpayers in 2009 (of more than 140 million), picked up fully 20 percent of the nation’s tab.
That infamous top 1 percent? They footed more than a third (38 percent) of the bill, though they accounted for just 20 percent of wages in 2008.
The top 10 percent shouldered 70 percent of income taxes (while almost no one in the bottom half paid a cent).

-NYP 9/22/11

There needs to be reform of the tax code. There are high income tax payers who are paying less than other. The numbers are small, but do exist. This calls for tax reform of deductions not a policy of raising rates. However, there are larger issues at stake.

If the bottom half do not pay taxes, what is their stake in the debt reduction discussion? If the top ten percent pay 70% of the taxes, is that fair or should it be higher?