Coffee Script is getting good press on this site and twitter, but is it just about coding in a particular style, or does it actually save you from Javascript?

I love Ruby for it's clarity, and I'm probably still a novice at Javascript, though I've managed to use it for a few games. I'd love to use Coffee Script, but is it just another layer of abstraction? I was afraid, it would just add another layer to debug.

After reading the docs, my impression was that a coder would need to be pretty proficient at Javascript - and sort of translate what they wanted to do in their mind first into Coffee Script, only to have it compiled back to Javascript.

I'd love to hear if Coffee Script is saving you time. What about beginners? Is it more advisable to stick with Javascript and get really good at it first?