There should be equality between men and women.  There is a fundamental principle that men and women should be considered equal in all walks of life; and as such should both have an equal role in the military, including being in combat.  Not allowing combat roles for women has an unfortunate side effect of increasing inequality in terms of ranks. Combat duty is necessary or highly beneficial for promotion to senior officer positions in many armies. [1] If women cannot serve in combat, very few will ever reach the highest ranks of the military; this creates a glass ceiling that will be very hard to break without this change to allowing women to serve in combat. Women have to be given the same opportunities as men, in the army in order to have the same opportunities they have to be exposed to the same risks.  [1] Jones, Melissa, ‘Combat Women’, iVillage.co.uk.  Powers, Rod, ‘What the Recruiter Never Told You’, About.com guide, Accessed June 2nd, 2011