Vaush

### YT Subs.

409,000+ (October 17, 2022) [main channel]112,000+ (October 17, 2022) [second channel]

### Gender

Male

**Ian Kochinski**, known online as **Vaush**, is an American Twitch streamer, YouTuber, and equestrian enthusiast who advocates for libertarian socialism. Throughout his career, he has debated numerous figures on the right and far right.

## Early Life

Vaush was born in California on February 14, 1994. He is of Catholic Polish and Irish descent, with his father being an infamous Twitter shitposter.

## Debate Sphere

Prior to starting his own YouTube channel, he was known as **IrishLaddie** and was a long time member of Destiny's community. IrishLaddie would occasionally go on Destiny's streams to debate him on numerous topics including political violence, communism, SJWs, etc.

In 2019, Destiny was given leaked Discord messages showing IrishLaddie sexually harassing another member of his community. Following this, Destiny exiled IrishLaddie from his spaces and banned him for a month (which later became a permanent ban).

IrishLaddie would later apologize for his actions on his newly-created YouTube channel. He also changed his pseudonym to "Vaush".

In the latter parts of 2019, he began his streaming career and made multiple videos advocating for socialism and or anarchism. He'd also go on to debate many figures on both the right and far-right, including Actual Justice Warrior, Blaire White, Hunter Avallone (who he helped convert to the left) and Sargon of Akkad.

## Publicity

On March 8, 2022, *Reuters* posted an article debunking a false Twitter meme that depicted Vaush as being the ‘Kharkiv Kid Finder’. The Kharkiv Kid Finder is a fictional man who supposedly saves children in Kharkiv affected by the Russian invasion.

Vaush was invited to a live stream event hosted by U.S. representative Ro Khanna at the White House in late September 2023. The event included debates and interviews with other progressive creators.

## Views

Vaush is supportive of market socialism, libertarian socialism, anarchism and other left-wing political theories. He no longer identifies as an anarchist. Several other anarchist YouTubers such as Zoe Baker questions whether or not he understood anarchist theories and praxis. He is also a vocal opponent of Bernie or Bust, believing it to be naive.

In terms of foreign policy, he is a staunch critic of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, as well as the Israeli apartheid in Palestine.

## Controversies

* Vaush, Fawn, Bruce Ray and Hasan Piker were banned from Twitch for saying "cracker".
* Vaush underwent criticism for his "tactical" use of the N word during a debate on the Killstream. While he initially defended the context in which it was said, Vaush later changed his mind and disavowed that remark.
* In 2022, Vaush was the subject of criticism and drama due to a Tweet he made in response to J.K. Rowling ("*Women be quieter and start apologizing challenge*"). Many criticized the remark as misogynistic, while others claimed it was bad optics.

## Trivia

* Vaush currently lives in Seattle, WA with his ex-partner highyena and fellow streamer conure.
* During one of his debates with a race realist, Vaush asked his opponent if he knew what "Alden's Number" was. The opponent said "I'm not sure, I may have heard the term" despite Alden's Number being a completely made-up term. Alden's Number later turned into a popular meme among BreadTube.
* His gender is male and his sexuality is pansexual.
* On May of 2021, Vaush raised close to $292 284.71 USD for the Palestine Children's Relief Fund (PCRF), an organization aimed at helping displaced and traumatized children in war-town Gaza.
* His only (self-admitted) losses in a debate were one time against Sargon of Akkad and two times against Contrapoints.
* Following Texas' September 2021 abortion ban, Vaush raised over $135,895 to Planned Parenthood via a video game charity stream.
* On March 9, 2022, Vaush raised $325 048.30 USD during a 24-hours livestream for Project HOPE for Ukrainian refugees.

## References

1. ↑ Vaush's YouTube Stats. SocialBlade. Archived from the original on October 17, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
2. ↑ The Vaush Pit's YouTube Stats. SocialBlade. Archived from the original on October 17. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
3. ↑ https://twitter.com/markkochinski Mark Kochinski's Twitter
4. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEDxCZlOMQ4 "Destiny Confronts Vaush on Claims of Sexual Harassment"
5. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XNzB8r3A5M 36:18 (Destiny talks about Vaush's ban during a heated debate with a leftist)
6. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hWv33d5jyKY "In Regards to Recent Drama (Explanations, Context and Apologies)"
7. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=arVBsXB5GRw "MIND-MELTING Debate w/ Actual Justice Warrior - Crime, Capitalism, & Puberty Blockers"
8. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-o\_yuAuzl6Q "Discussion w/ Blaire White"
9. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-kQGo2rA0U "DEBATE w/ Hunter Avallone"
10. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6fFFQ1eru2k "Hunter Avallone LEAVES THE RIGHT (And I Helped!)"
11. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7MDfFLC6nMs "Debating Sargon of Akkad" (1st debate)
12. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EZZ7FvaFzbQ "Debating SARGON OF AKKAD and EXPOSING him as a White Nationalist" (2nd debate)
13. ↑ Fact Check-CNN did not tweet a story about ‘the Kharkiv kid finder’. March 8, 2022. Reuters. Archived from the original on September 29, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
14. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UM8to6lOhkg "Interviewing Congressman Ro Khanna w/ Emma Vigeland"
15. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GNMpeJKlNUQ&t=172s "Debating Vaush, Emma Vigeland And Ryan Grim At The White House"
16. ↑ Vaush [@VaushV] (May 29, 2022). Maybe it’s a good thing I don’t use the anarchist label much anymore because every time I log on this site the same small group of anarchists are discussing some unfathomably retarded shit and it’s a bit disheartening (Tweet). Twitter. Archived from the original on May 30, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
17. ↑ Zoe Baker [@anarchopac] (May 29, 2022). ~~From my pov the reason why its good that you don't use the anarchist label anymore is because you don't believe in anarchism and don't appear to know much about it.~~ (Tweet). Twitter. Archived from the original on May 29, 2022. Retrieved October 17, 2022.
18. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNiqCxLrrBU "Is "Bernie or Bust" a Bad Idea?"
19. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GEOYT6hnSy8 "The Legendary Badassery of Ukraine's President Zelensky"
20. ↑ HAMAS INVADES ISRAEL; ISRAEL DECLARES WAR (YouTube Video)
21. ↑ Patterson, Calum (December 14, 2021). Two more Twitch streamers banned after Hasan over “cracker” slur controversy. Dexerto. Archived from the original on November 15, 2022. Retrieved March 11, 2023.
22. ↑ Gach, Ethan. Socialist Twitch Streamer Banned For Calling White People ‘Cracker’ [Update]. Kotaku. Archived from the original on January 22, 2023. Retrieved March 11, 2023.
23. ↑ Hissong, Samatha (December 22, 2021). Hasan Piker Skewers Twitch for ‘Capitulating to White Supremacists’. Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on February 25, 2023. Retrieved March 11, 2023.
24. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=slirSgbYBAA 1:33:20 "Am I a Jew? Arguing with Nazis on THE KILLSTREAM"
25. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BVGwuTv9bIw "Addressing The Tactical Controversy"
26. ↑ Vaush [@VaushV] (May 18, 2021). After nearly 27 hours of uninterrupted livestreaming, we managed to raise an unbelievable $292,284.71 for Palestine Children's Relief Fund. I had the pleasure of speaking to the charity's founder, @Stevesosebee, and I could not be more confident in the value of his work. (Tweet). Twitter. Archived from the original on May 18, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
27. ↑ Grayson, Nathan (May 18, 2021). As Gaza Burns, Twitch Charity Streams For Palestine Remain Few And Far Between. Kotaku. Archived from the original on December 4, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
28. ↑ Kochinski, Ian. Vaush's Planned Parenthood Fundraiser Stream. September 8, 2021. GoFundMe. Archived from the original on September 12, 2021. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
29. ↑ Vaush's 24-Hour Fundraiser For Ukraine. Streamlabs Charity. Archived from the original on March 13, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
30. ↑ Kochinski. Ian. 24-Hour Elden Ring Livestream - Raising Money For Ukraine Through Project HOPE | !donate to help! (video). March 9, 2022. YouTube. Vaush. Archived from the original on December 14, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2023.
31. ↑ Vaush [@VaushV] (March 9, 2022). Also come drop by my 24-hour fundraiser stream, we're playing Elden Ring to raise money for Ukrainian refugees! (Tweet). Twitter. Archived from the original on April 13, 2022. Retrieved March 7, 2023.