Furlough Foolishness

This furlough this is making less and less sense to me. It appears to me that there is no true budgetary savings, and the loss of work time and the stress that it puts on our already burdened State services and human capital has yet to be included in the calculated "savings".

Here's what just doesn't comput. I have to take three days off without pay--a little less than 15% of my pay. With the time that I have worked, and with the special program I am in, I earn two days off a month that are vested and are mine until I either use them or retire and cash them out (in some form or other). I usually try to take the days off, just to stay even; but with the advent of the furlough, I am not taking my days off. So here's what's happening:

My pay is reduced which naturally reduces my taxable gross, therefore I pay less in State and Federal taxes (and I pay a lot of taxes) and social security. I am banking the leave days that I would normally take off, thereby increasing a State liability of difference between the one day of leave that I am not taking less the taxes that I am not paying.

On my days off, I use it for going to the doctor and using the other services that are provided as a part of my employment. Normally, I wouldn't use the services, but because I have the spare time now, I use the services--therefore increasing medical plan and other costs. I spend less because I have less money, therefore decreasing sales revenue. Let's face it, staying home and reading a book or working in the garden cheap.

What I am doing is universal throughout the State. So tell me, how is this saving?