Rosh Hashana Without a Shofar?!

Every year on Rosh Hashana we wait to hear the shofar. This year, on Shabbos, there is none. The reason everyone gives is a technical one, a concern about carrying through the streets. But that answer only covers up something much bigger. Shofar is not just another mitzvah. It is the moment a person recognizes Hashem as King, the same moment Adam was created with the ability to choose. So why would something that important simply disappear over a worry about carrying? And if Shabbos was never missing anything, what was shofar actually giving us all along, and why don't we need it this year?