As bad as the economy, corporate earnings and the market have been, there's ample reason to expect things to get worse -- much worse. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is trading at levels last seen a decade ago, and as we noted recently, some of Wall Street's biggest investment houses put the odds of an honest-to-goodness depression at one in five.

Naturally that's got folks looking for ways to play defense, where just maintaining principal and maybe collecting a smidgen of dividends counts as a great victory. That's a perfectly rational response to this truly uncertain and often terrifying investing landscape.

Slideshow: 5 Investments for the Fearless Investor

But what if you could cast fear aside and wager some idle cash on seemingly crazy plays? These investments would be very high risk -- and very high reward -- so don't bet your 401(k), college savings or any money you might need in the next five years on them.

If you're lucky enough to have cash you can afford to lose, here are five ideas for a truly Fearless Portfolio. Three of the five are exchange-traded funds, which in addition to low fees and liquidity offer a layer of diversification.

China

While the U.S. market coughed up more than 40% in the last 12 months, China developed tuberculosis: The iShares FTSE/Xinhua China 25 Index ETF (FXI) lost half its value as the aura surrounding the Olympics wore off and China s economic growth slowed to single digits. "As long as you are really willing to be fearless for the next five years and just lock it up, I could wrap my arms around China," says Joe Clark, managing partner of Financial Enhancement Group, figuring the Middle Kingdom will bounce back big time -- eventually.

Oil

Last summer speculation and growing demand had black gold going for $150 a barrel. Since then a relentless global recession has killed commodities and oil in particular. Now it's lucky to fetch $40. It's hard to imagine but the global economy will cycle back and so too will the price of oil. "When U.S. and global economies start to recover, demand for oil is going to pick up," says Bernie McGinn, founder and CEO of McGinn Investment Management. "You could easily see it back at $100 a barrel." The U.S. Oil ETF (USO) offers a cheap and easy way to play that rebound.

Ford

It's no secret the U.S. auto industry is fighting for survival. As the only member of the Big Three not gorging at the government trough, Ford (F) got the best chance to pull through. It has access to credit and a CEO whose turnaround mettle has been tested before. (Alan Mulally flew Boeing (BA) through the turbulence following 9/11.) "You've got huge upside with Ford -- if it works," McGinn says. "If you're wrong with Ford, you're real wrong. But I think the Ford story makes sense." With the stock trading at levels not seen in a qaurter century, that story might have a very happy ending if you can handle the ride.

Banks and Financials

Financials are getting hammered. Bank stocks are in their worst decline in history. "If you're going to be in the market for the next five years you just may not find a cheaper subset of stocks," says Sean O'Hara, president of RevenueShares, which just rolled out the RevenueShares Financials Sector (RWW) ETF to offer investors some exposure. O'Hara follows a buy-and-hold asset allocation approach and cautions that just because financials are cheap doesn't mean they can't get cheaper. "You're clearly catching a falling knife," he says. "The question is are you going to catch it by the handle or the blade?" The SPDR KBW Bank ETF (KBE) tracks an index of 26 big money centers in the U.S.; if you are willing to bank on this distressed sector it offers a one-stop shopping option.

Home Depot

The housing market got us into this mess and there's little hope for a turnaround soon. At the same time, regional markets with massive problems (Florida, California, Arizona, Michigan and Las Vegas) might be making the national picture look worse than it will prove to be. "There are five places that are like the bird flu for housing," says O'Hara. "We're extrapolating from those five hot spots for the rest of the country and it may not be the case." No one's got much enthusiasm for the sector, but for a truly fearless bet, Home Depot (HD) is a national play trading at a discount to the market -- and it sports a 4.5% dividend yield.