With certain types of investments, you just know you're in for a wild ride. But there's no sense in assuming extra risk without a reasonable chance of a proportional reward.

This is why I encourage investors to think twice about getting involved with Russian stocks.

As anyone who follows emerging markets knows, Russian equities are exceptionally dangerous. Typically more than twice as volatile as U.S. stocks, they often vacillate between massive gains and dismal losses.

However, investors willing to endure the extreme volatility haven't gotten nearly enough in ret