Perhaps this isn't the best forum for such a philosophical debate, but the notion that because you have prototypes in JavaScript you don't have classes is just

Perhaps this isn't the best forum for such a philosophical debate, but the notion that because you have prototypes in JavaScript you don't have classes is just plain wrong. Every single time you see JavaScript prototypes used effectively, you'll find that they follow a classical pattern: A constructor function serves as the class object from which new objects are instantiated. Syntax like instanceof ("object instanceof class") gives this away. So do all of the built-in JavaScript classes: String, Function, RegExp, Number... If it's an abstract object that defines common properties for instances, it's a class object, regardless of what you choose to call it. JS prototypes just expose the implementation mechanism, and CoffeeScript just provides you with a convenient way to manipulate the prototype chain.