WASHINGTON

Cheney says McCain erred with Palin as running mate

Former Vice President Dick Cheney says it was a mistake for Republican Sen. John McCain to pick Sarah Palin as his vice presidential nominee.

Cheney said he likes Palin but she didn’t pass the test of being ready to be president and that McCain’s campaign didn’t handle the vetting process well.

Republican challenger Mitt Romney is expected to announce a running mate in August. He is widely expected to choose someone perceived as competent but safe.

Cheney, whose own unpopularity was a flashpoint for the Bush administration, said there are two lists that candidates maintain. The bigger list includes politicians who want to be viewed as under consideration to boost their standing. Cheney said a second, much shorter list contains those who are actually being considered.

TEHRAN, Iran

As demographic ages, Iran cuts birth-control programs

Iran’s new message to parents: Get busy and have babies.

In a major reversal of once far-reaching family-planning policies, authorities are now slashing its birth-control programs in an attempt to avoid an aging demographic similar to many Western countries that are struggling to keep up with state medical and social security costs.

The changes — announced in Iranian media last week – came after Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei described the country’s wide-ranging contraceptive services as “wrong.” The independent Shargh newspaper quoted Mohammad Esmail Motlaq, a Health Ministry official, as saying family-planning programs have been cut from the budget for the current Iranian year, which began in March.

But Iran’s economy is stumbling and many young people are postponing marriage or keeping their families small.

EVERGLADES CITY, Fla.

Man charged after alligator bites off hand that feeds it

A Florida airboat captain whose hand was bitten off by a 9-foot alligator faces charges of feeding of the animal.

Collier County Jail records show 63-year-old Wallace Weatherholt was charged Friday with unlawful feeding of an alligator and later posted $1,000 bond. His next court date is Aug. 22.

Weatherholt was attacked on June 12th as he was giving an Indiana family a tour of the Everglades. The family said Weatherholt hung a fish over the side of the boat and had his hand at the water’s surface when the alligator attacked.

Wildlife officers tracked and euthanized the gator. Weatherholt’s hand was found but could not be reattached.

Feeding alligators is a second-degree misdemeanor.

NEWARK, N.J.

Avatar will help passengers in international arrivals area

Passengers at Newark Liberty International Airport will always get a smile from this customer-service representative. Just don’t ask her to carry luggage.

That’s because she’s an avatar.

The Port Authority on Friday will unveil the computerized, hologram-like image named “Ava” in the international arrivals area in Terminal B. She’s programmed to answer passengers’ most frequently asked questions.

The Port Authority is spending $180,000 to place the high-tech help at Newark, Kennedy and LaGuardia airports.

— From news service reports