Military spending : A perspective on the restructuring dynamics of the defense sector

This article is articulated in two sections. In the first-one we try to explain the dynamics of military spending and others social expenditures in the period 1988-2010 for the United States. According to empirical data we support the argument that there is a remarkable trade-off in the allocation of public spending, because, often, the increase in military expenditures was to detriment of those for the education, social security and health. In the second section we analyze the transition from the old "military industrial complex" to the new "military-security system" in the light of defense industry restructing. We focus in particular on the role of financialization and industrial concentration of the firms.